The leader of Bracknell Forest Council and a cabinet member that have been suspended from the Labour Party pending investigation has spoken out.
Mary Temperton, the council leader, and Roy Bailey, cabinet member for children and young people, have both been suspended pending investigation over an allegation of a fundraiser they made for the former mayor of Bracknell Forest.
Naheed Ejaz, who served as the first Muslim mayor of the area from 2023/24, has been convicted of perverting the course of justice after her son Diwan Khan raped a 15-year-old girl.
It is understood they had set up a fundraiser for Ejaz, who served as a Labour councillor for Great Hollands from May 2023 to her resignation in September 2024.
In a joint statement, councillors Temperton and Bailey said: “Our thoughts, first and foremost, are with the victim. Violence against women and girls is appalling, and we are pleased justice has been served.
“We wholeheartedly apologise for this error in judgement. It was a completely misguided act of attempted charity made without the full facts.
“We have spent decades in public service and we are both mortified that an attempt at helping someone we believed to be in crisis could be construed as minimising or detracting from these appalling crimes.”
Diwan was convicted for rape and Ejaz was convicted for perverting the course of justice following a trial at Winchester Crown Court on February 12.
Cllr Temperton is a representative for Great Hollands and cllr Bailey represents the Town Centre & The Parks ward.
