Apology letter over Coleman's Nazi email slur arrives (From Times Series)

Apology letter over Barnet Councillor Brian Coleman's Nazi email slur arrives

9:19am Wednesday 31st October 2012 in News By Chris Hewett

A long-awaited letter of apology from Councillor Brian Coleman has arrived at the doorsteps of two voters he labelled a Nazi blackshirt and a disloyal Israeli.

The Totteridge councillor was ordered by a standards board to apologise after sending the offensive correspondence earlier this year.

But the former Barnet Mayor refused and when a 28-day deadline to send the apology expired in September, Conservative group leader Richard Cornelius stepped in.

More than seven weeks after the original deadline expired however, Councillor Coleman sent letters to Ron Cohen and Charlotte Jago that arrived yesterday.

They read: “In line with the recent standards board rulling (sic). I hereby apologies (sic) for any offence caused by the emails in question.”

The offensive comments were made during a series of correspondence between the relating to a campaign supported by Mr Cohen and Dr Jago to remove Veolia Water from the Pinkham Way waste plant bid.

The campaign centre’s around the company’s involvement in projects in the Palestinian territories.

In one response, Councillor Coleman labelled Jewish Mr Cohen a disloyal Israeli and told Dr Jago “70 years ago you would have been in the (Nazi) blackshirts”.

The apology arrived hours before it was announced Councillor Coleman had been suspended from the national Conservative Party after he was charged with assault last week.

The charges relate to an incident in North Finchley High Road in September.