Councillor defiant amid backlash over Gaza ceasefire letter sent to peers across UK

Data protection concerns have been raised after a councillor mass emailed more than 19,000 of his peers across the country to ask them to sign a public letter calling for a ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas conflict.

Councillors responding to the mass communication on X, formerly Twitter, said they had not signed up for the mailing list and claimed the email threatened to publicise the names of those who refuse to provide a signature.

The public letter, which was authored by Cllr James Giles and Cllr Jamal Chohan from the Royal Borough of Kingston, demands Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and opposition leader Sir Keir Starmer call for an immediate ceasefire in Israel and Gaza – and that the two leaders seek impartial mediation for a two-state solution.

Cllr Giles said that the information and email addresses of the almost 20,000 councillors contacted had been collected from council web pages using 'Open Council Data UK', which is a service often used by charities, political parties, researchers and campaign groups to make contact with elected representatives.

Responding to a councillor who asked how their email address was added to the list, Cllr Giles tweeted: "All personal data collected is provided publicly by the subjects via their local authority website for the purpose of enabling interested parties to learn the names and political parties of local representatives and to make contact with them.

"These purposes align entirely with the purposes of me contacting you as a fellow elected member as part of the open letter, and subjects are therefore considered to be informed about this use of their personal data."

The email included a line that said: "We will also be publishing the names of those who have been invited to sign but choose not to, in the interest of public accountability."

Commenting on X, Cllr Jonathan Williams of Winchester City Council said he "felt personally threatened by the email". Other councillors have echoed Cllr Williams' sentiment.

Cllr Giles strongly rejected claims that the letter threatened to out those who do not sign the letter.

He said: "To clarify, and as should be obvious by virtue of the offer of anonymity to those who do sign, there is no intention of publishing the names of all 19,000 councillors from across the country in two separate lists - dependent on whether they have signed the below letter.

"This would single out those who signed anonymously and remove that protection from party whips. Nor is there any intention to publish the names of councillors who actively refuse to sign the letter but object their name being published."

Cllr Shaun Davies, Chair of the Local Government Association (LGA), on behalf of all LGA group leaders, said: "The LGA does not endorse how this recent communication from Cllr Giles and Cllr Chohan was sent, nor the hurt, worry and distress that this has caused. We can also confirm that the LGA did not share any councillor email contact information.”

The LGA added that it understood that the Royal Borough of Kingston’s Monitoring Officer, the Information Commissioner’s Office and the Metropolitan Police were aware “of this ongoing situation”.

Cllr Giles said on X that he had agreed to a temporary suspension of his role on the LGA's City Regions Board "until the heat dies down", on the advice of the Independent group leader.

Cllr Chohan stressed that he didn't send the email in question. He also said on X that Cllr Giles had clarified to all councillors that those who didn’t support a ceasefire would not be 'outed'.

He said the LGA had “disregarded the fact that James made clear that only consenting signatories will feature on the list calling for a ceasefire and monopolised to try and detract from the open letter calling for ceasefire. It only led to more councillors signing it.”

In a statement Kingston Council said: “Our primary concern is the security and safety of our residents, elected members, staff and our local communities, whilst encouraging tolerance and community cohesion. 

“The campaign that has been brought to our attention by many, is an initiative of individual councillors and is not Kingston Council led or endorsed. 

“We are currently looking into the details surrounding this matter and are unable to provide any further comment at this stage.”

A spokesperson for the Metropolitan Police said the force was aware of the letter, adding that officers had made contact and offered support to those who have reported it. “The contents are currently being assessed,” it added.

Adam Carey