Councillor recalls threat to 'burn down her house'

Labour councillor Safiya Saeed has represented the Burngreave ward since 2021

A councillor has spoken of being sent a text message saying her house "should be burned down" while campaigning at the recent local election.

Safiya Saeed told fellow councillors that as well as the threat she had also been "called names" and "questioned about my faith".

The Labour councillor for Sheffield's Burngreave ward spoke about the abuse she had received at a council meeting on Wednesday.

Fellow councillors also shared their stories of abuse, with Liberal Democrat group leader Shaffaq Mohammed saying it had become "personal and nasty".

Councillors debated a motion on the subject of abuse on Wednesday

Mrs Saeed made her remarks after the deputy leader of the council, Fran Belbin, tabled a motion calling on the authority to note that intimidation and abuse of councillors and MPs "undermines democracy" and deters people from standing for election.

She said: "At this election I've been questioned about my faith and I've been called names.

"We fled war so we could come to this city and feel safe [but] this city does not feel safe."

She said there was "no excuse" for somebody to "text me that I should get my house burnt down".

Mr Mohammed said the abuse also affected councillors’ families.

“They do not sign up for this," he said.

"I have been a councillor for 20 years and the abuse has become personal and nasty.

“Good people stop being councillors when there is behaviour like this.”

Meanwhile Terry Fox said a fellow councillor had been with family members when a member of the public shouted he “should be shot”.

He said the council itself needed to do more to protect people.

“Recently, I was hit on the head in this chamber when there was a protest and someone threw a banner," he told the meeting.

“I asked officers where the risk assessment was, where the health and safety report was, but at the next meeting the same people were here.

"Someone who had invaded the chamber was just allowed back in the public gallery.”

'Alarming rise'

The issue of the abuse of elected officials has also been raised by home secretary Yvette Cooper, who will chair a meeting of MPs to look at improving safety for politicians.

She said: “During the general election, we saw an alarming rise in intimidation, harassment and abuse towards candidates, campaigners and volunteers from all parties which simply cannot be tolerated. Some of those incidents are now being investigated by the police.

“The disgraceful scenes we saw in some areas during this election campaign must not be repeated.”

The Speaker of the Commons, Sir Lindsay Hoyle, has also spoken about the issue.

He told BBC Radio 4’s The Westminster Hour: “The amount of intimidation, threats and the way it is carried out is much greater than anybody can imagine.

“I have never seen anything as bad. That is a constant worry. If there’s something that keeps me awake at night, it is the safety of MPs.”

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