A councillor who was ruled to have breached the council code of conduct says the whole process is "a political stitch-up".

A hearing at Harrow Borough Council today found independent councillor Husain Akhtar had breached the code in relation to his involvement with the Harrow Council for Justice (HCJ) website last year.

Cllr Victoria Silver and Cllr Zarina Khalid made complaints about posts made on the website.

In response to the ruling Cllr Akhtar said: “The outcome of the hearing does not surprise me because in my opinion it is nothing more than a political stitch-up."

Cllr Akhtar said he had previously called for the process to be delayed after raising concerns about the standards procedure to the ombudsman.

Cllr Akhtar said: “There was no point for me to participate in the hearing that lacked transparency and fairness.

“I think the hearing outcome sends the wrong message and has done nothing to enhance the credibility of the standards procedures.”

The members of the panel upheld both complaints and agreed Cllr Akthar had breached the council’s code of conduct.

Sanctions against the councillor will include further training on data protection, publication of a notice in the local press informing the public of the breaches and publication of the notice on the council website.