Sunderland Reform UK councillor Glenn Gibbins has been reinstated by the party after being suspended over historic racist Facebook posts. The posts, which have since been deleted, included comments that Nigerians 'should be melted down to fill potholes'. Gibbins, who was elected to represent the Hylton Castle ward in last month's local elections, has been issued a final written warning following an internal disciplinary process.
Reinstatement and Warning
A Reform UK spokesman confirmed the decision: 'Following an internal disciplinary process, Coun Gibbins has been readmitted to the party and issued with a final written warning. He has apologised for making the post and accepts that it was made in extremely poor taste showing poor judgment.'
Community Reaction
The Sunderland Nigerian Community CIC, an organisation dedicated to improving the lives of its members and the broader Sunderland community, protested at the councillor's inauguration last month and called for his resignation. The community stated that Gibbins' apology, in which he claimed the comments were 'intended as jokes' but acknowledged they were inappropriate, lacked genuine remorse.
Political Fallout
The social media posts were initially reported by campaign group Hope Not Hate and later discussed on BBC's Sunday With Laura Kuenssberg programme. Reform UK deputy leader Richard Tice refused to directly criticise Gibbins at the time, accusing the media of 'smearing' his party. Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch later branded the comments as 'disgusting' on Sky News and questioned why Tice had not directly condemned them. Tice subsequently posted on X, formerly Twitter: 'I literally said in the interview that I condemn anything that is wrong or inappropriate. Which obviously includes those (Mr Gibbins's) remarks: simple.'
