Deputy council leader claims she was making the remark about herself after someone called her 'fatty'
A DEPUTY council leader has been slammed after she barked "who ate all the pies?" when she was heckled by a member of the public.
Cllr Linda Thomas, the chairman of Bolton Council's Health and Wellbeing board, has been accused of showing "a clear lack of respect" over the remarks.
She was caught making the jibe on a live-streamed video - the first full council meeting the local authority has aired online.
Cllr Thomas has since claimed she was being "self-derogatory" after someone called her "fatty" as she made her budget speech.
The politician asked "who ate all the pies?" just days after Sutton United's reserve keeper had to resign when he was seen eating a pie on the touchline.
It is thought Cllr Thomas' heckler was blasting her over the council's controversial £300,000 grant to a solicitor firm.
Angela Neal, who was watching the meeting at home, has lodged a formal complaint against the deputy council leader over her comments.
She said: "My husband and I were watching at home and we couldn't believe what we heard.
"Then we played it back to make sure we had heard correctly.
"I don't have any particular political allegiance, but I think that if you are elected by the people of this town then you should show those people more respect.
"Members of the public have the right to be at these meetings and share their views.
"These comments demonstrate a clear lack of respect."
Cllr Thomas has defended herself, and said: "Someone shouted fatty at me. I said it about myself in a self-derogatory way because I thought they meant me.
"I don't know who shouted it, they could have been thin for all I know.
"I was saying it about myself. I'm a woman of a certain age, I dieted and I'm a little bit overweight.
"I'm embarrassed about it and thought someone was having a go at me and I was ridiculing myself.
"Whoever watched it has taken it out of context. It was not a comment about anybody in the gallery, it was a rhetorical remark because I was.
"It was one-off-the-cuff remark to cover up the embarrassment."
She added: "I think if members of the public watching the live-streaming could hear what is sometimes shouted down from the gallery, they would be quite shocked.
"Most people who come to the watch the meetings in the gallery are well behaved, but there is an element who come and spoil it. I try to deal with it in a humorous way."
The clip also apparently shows Cllr Nick Peel, who was sitting next to Cllr Thomas, say the word "fatty" before she makes her comment.
He has denied making the remark and claims he was saying the word "pathetic".
Cllr Peel said: "I have looked at the video and I say 'pathetic', not 'fatty' or anything like that.
"There were a lot of comments from the public gallery. We heard the word 'fatty' and a number of other things, and they are not picked up on the video."
A spokesman for the council leader Cllr Cliff Morris said: "There are a lot of comments being thrown around at council meetings.
"Although these people are political, public figures that does not necessarily shield them from personal comments made about them."
"There have been a lot of personal comments made towards the leader of the council as well, and it should be remembered that he has not taken any further action about them.
"We will go through the usual procedures of the complaint process and will have a full investigation into what was said.
"Cllr Thomas was focusing on the speech she was giving. She was heckled, heard a comment that was thrown towards her, and responded with what has been caught on the microphone.
"Emotions run high at these meetings and it was totally in the moment."
