Ukip councillor sacked after posing as building inspector

Philip Hyde Archant

A former Ukip councillor who left the party in mysterious circumstances was sacked after impersonating a building inspector, the Recorder can reveal.

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Cllr Philip Hyde (right) with his old colleague Cllr Lawrence Webb at last year's council election Cllr Philip Hyde (right) with his old colleague Cllr Lawrence Webb at last year's council election

Cllr Philip Hyde, of Heaton ward, was dumped by his six colleagues after admitting in an email he had visited a house of multiple occupation (HMO) building site “under the guise of an inspector”.

The email, leaked to the Recorder, was sent to Ukip members from his council account on April 16 while discussing problems with HMOs in Harold Hill.

At the time, he and party leader Cllr Lawrence Webb were spearheading a push for an article 4 direction, which would require developers to gain planning permission. The motion was eventually passed in May.

He wrote: “I went to Keats Avenue (following email from resident) and decided to go into a conversion site under the guise of an inspector.”

When asked to comment, Cllr Hyde, now sitting as an independent, told the Recorder: “You just carry on digging your own grave...No interest to me.”

Cllr Webb confirmed the email and said it, along with a number of other issues, led to Cllr Hyde’s sacking by Ukip.

In a party statement, he said: “Following a number of incidents, the remaining members of Ukip felt Cllr Hyde would be happier working outside the formal structure of the group.”

On his former colleague’s actions, he said: “He felt he was acting in the residents’ best interests.”

Cllr Hyde, a former city trader who runs a blog named Finance Reaper, won 4,355 votes in his failed bid to become Ilford North MP in May.

Earlier this month he confirmed his dismissal on Facebook.

In a public group called Protect Our Neighbourhood STOP Multiple Occupancy Builds on June 5, he wrote: “I have been dismissed as a UKIP Councillor following a dispute with the leader in Havering, Lawrence Webb.

“I am now an Independent Councillor. I will not publicly go into detail of the dispute but put simply I refused to compromise my understanding of honesty and integrity for the sake of political unity.”

He added he would be “more than happy to stand down” as a councillor if the people of Heaton wanted him to.

Havering Council said it has received no complaints about his actions and therefore cannot investigate the issue.

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