Two councillors squared up after an angry Kirklees Council meeting.
There were ugly scenes at Huddersfield Town Hall on Wednesday night following a turbulent budget meeting that saw council tax hiked and tens of millions in cuts given the go-ahead.
Labour, Lib Dem, Green and Independent councillors all blamed the Conservative government for the cash crisis at Kirklees Council.
After a number of insults were traded, former Conservative group leader Clr Robert Light was witnessed aggressively confronting Clr Musarrat Khan.
Clr Khan had earlier shouted out “sit down” after Clr Light attempted to raises concerns about comments made in the three-hour meeting.
He demanded an apology but chair of the meeting, the Mayor of Kirklees Clr Jim Dodds, declined to make Clr Khan say sorry.
Then as councillors left the town hall chamber, Clr Light blocked Clr Khan’s exit from her row of seats. He began shouting and angrily pointing his finger.
Furious Clr Light had to be pulled away by other councillors to allow Clr Khan to leave the room.
Clr Khan, cabinet member for highways and neighbourhoods, said she thought Clr Light had over-reacted.
She said: “The reason I told him to sit down was because the mayor had promised us that nobody would be allowed to make the meeting over-run.
“He allows them (the Conservatives) to get away with so much.
“I was also disappointed that the mayor did not stop personal attacks against our leader. We were supposed to be talking about the budget.”
Clr Khan said she was hoping for an apology for the outburst.
She added: “He said ‘how dare you speak to me like that’ and he had his finger in my face. I didn’t shout back at him.
“I said, ‘I don’t want to speak to you, move out of my way’. We have a code of conduct as councillors and that’s certainly a breach in my opinion.
“I’m not considering a complaint at this moment in time but it would nice if Clr Light would write me an apology.”
Clr Light said he had lost his temper after a number of insulting comments had come his way.
And he also blamed the mayor for letting councillors’ get away with trading verbal blows earlier in the meeting.
He said: “She shouldn’t have said what she said. She should have been pulled up on it earlier.
“She wasn’t so I did at the end of the meeting – I told her she was out of order.”
Clr Khan denied she had aimed any other comments at Clr Light.
