Council asked to forbid artists from NBHD Weekender

Following a recent controversy on social media involving Warrington North MP Charlotte Nichols, Warrington's Tories have come out in force against the MP and the Labour-run council.

The controversy came about after Jamie Webster performed at Neighbourhood Weekender at the end of May, and led the crowd in a chant that has been described by Tories as 'hate speech.'

Warrington's Tories are calling for the council to monitor 'hate speech' at festivals in the town (Image: Newsquest)

Taking to social media, Ms Nichols - a Labour MP - endorsed the chanting, and said that she 'loves' to see the crowd partaking in such chants.

She later came under fire, with some claiming she was being hypocritical given that she signed up to the 'Debate Not Hate' campaign, which aims for politics to become kinder and less aggressive.

This led the chair of Warrington's Conservatives - Theo Mirfin - to call for the Labour MP to resign her seat.

Now, the Tories have taken aim at the council, and are calling for the council to be more 'consistent' with its approach to the 'Debate Not Hate' campaign.

They say that in 2022, Jamie Webster performed at Neighbourhood Weekender and led the crowd in anti-Conservative chanting; they say this can be regarded as 'hate speech, meaning that it is incitement to discrimination, hostility or violence.'

Since the council 'allowed' Jamie Webster to return to the festival in 2023, the Tories are claiming that the council is complicit in giving an artist the platform to peddle 'hate speech.'

This claim is despite the fact that Warrington Borough Council does not organise the festival or monitor it.

Theo Mirfin, chair of Warrington Conservatives, has called for the Labour MP to resign (Image: Theo Mirfin)

One of Warrington's Conservative councillors, Wendy Maisey, is asking Warrington Borough Council’s Labour Councillors Group to confirm that all their councillors are signed up to the 'Debate Not Hate' campaign.

A spokesperson for the Conservative Group has called for the council to be 'more consistent': “Conservatives believe fundamentally in free speech, but that does not mean that government organisations should actively facilitate anyone engaging in incitement to discrimination, hostility or violence.

"The whole council came together in 2022 to say that debating and disagreeing with one another is a healthy part of democracy, but abuse and intimidation cross the line into dangerous territory.

"The right type of language matters."

They added: "The Conservative Group is now calling on Warrington Borough Council to review the rules and procedures for events that they facilitate on council-owned parks and public spaces, and to ban the very small minority of artists who are willing to use hate speech in their performances.”

Ms Nichols attended Neighbourhood Weekender at the end of May (Image: Charlotte Nichols)

A council spokesperson explained that the council has nothing to do with the organisation of Neighbourhood Weekender, and says it is unable to monitor how artists decide to use their platform.

Cllr Wendy Maisey added: "Charlotte Nichols MP has made many faux pas on social media, and she really needs to understand that words have repercussions.

"I asked a young member of the Conservatives at the weekend to come out and deliver leaflets with me. 

"Their response was that after the Neighbourhood Weekender tweet where the MP seemed to support [anti-Conservative] chanting, they were very concerned about repercussions.

"This is obviously bad for democracy at a time when we need to encourage young people to positively engage in local politics as they may well be the next generation of councillors for our town."

Charlotte Nichols MP said: "These histrionics from Warrington Conservatives are just another attempt to distract from the issues facing the people of Warrington, not least the cost of living crisis and NHS emergency into which they have plunged our country.

"I will not take lectures from these people whose poisonous infighting, antisemitism and homophobia have defined the lowest public debate.

“While the Tories double down on this non-story, they should instead reflect that the bad reception that they receive on the doorsteps is nothing to do with my tweets, and everything to do with their shameful record of failure over the past 13 years.

"If they want to engage young people, they should join my calls for a general election now so that we can elect a new government to finally give hope to the next generation.”

A council spokesperson explained that, despite the Tories' calls for action, it is not involved in the organisation or monitoring of Neighbourhood Weekender (Image: Supplied)

A spokesperson for Warrington Borough Council said: "We are not involved in arranging or contracting with the artists who perform at the Neighbourhood Weekender.

"We are aware that artists themselves are keen to pursue their freedom of speech/expression, and we are unable to monitor this. Lyrics and music can sometimes contain challenging messages and crowds make their own reactions to artist performances.

“Neighbourhood Weekender has taken place in Warrington since 2018, with only a year’s break due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

"The fifth instalment of the event this year was a great success, with over 60,000 people attending Victoria Park over the Friday evening and weekend.

“The overall feeling from festivalgoers was very positive as they enjoyed listening to music across three stages during a weekend of excellent weather.

"It is a fantastic event for the town and generated more than £2.5million in economic benefits to local businesses. There were also no police incidents or arrests.”

SJM Concerts did not wish to comment on this story.