Former councillor Jeff Milburn standing for election in Cleadon and East Boldon despite previous disqualification due to court conviction

Jeff Milburn is running for election in the Cleadon and East Boldon ward.

In July 2020, Mr Milburn pleaded guilty to possession of a lock knife when attending South Tyneside Magistrates’ Court.

He was sentenced to four months in prison, suspended for 12 months, and ordered to pay a £121 victim surcharge and £85 in court costs.

The offence related to his earlier court appearance on January 10, 2020.

Mr Milburn, who was an ‘independent Conservative’ councillor, appealed the sentence, but in July 2021 he was disqualified from his position on South Tyneside Council and barred from continuing his civic duties.

At that time, a spokesperson for South Tyneside Council said: “The sentence of four months disqualifies Mr Milburn from being a councillor as it passes the threshold as set out in law.

“The disqualification did not take effect whilst there was an appeal against the sentence being pursued.

“As that is no longer the case, Mr Milburn can now no longer act in the role.”

In August 2021, Mr Milburn was once again sparred jail but was given a 20 months prison sentence, suspended for two years, after police were called to a disturbance at the former councillors’ Cleadon home where officers seized two shotguns.

Mr Milburn also pleaded guilty to possessing a bladed article.

The court also heard how the former councillor had a shotgun certificate from 2012 but it was revoked in 2015 due to "public safety" concerns.

Now, Mr Milburn has successfully registered as an electoral candidate in the upcoming local elections on Thursday May 4, and is actively campaigning to return to the post he was forced to vacate.

Government regulations state anyone who is given a jail term of three months or more, whether that is suspended or not, can no longer act as a councillor or stand for election, which has led to confusion over why Mr Milburn is allowed to stand for election.

A South Tyneside Council spokesperson said: “Electoral law makes it clear that neither the Returning Officer, nor any other officer of the Council, has the power to prevent a candidate from submitting nomination papers or to reject papers if they meet the legal criteria set out in the rules. Returning Officers must accept nominations at face value and disregard any personal knowledge they may already have of a candidate.

“In this particular case, the nomination paper passed all of the requirements as stated by law.

“While the law does not prevent someone who is currently disqualified from being a councillor from standing for election, it does impose a requirement to make a declaration of their status.

"Again, neither the Returning Officer, nor any other Council officer, has any power to prevent a candidate submitting nomination papers which may contain a potentially false declaration.”

However, the council did highlight that any candidate who is disqualified would have to vacate their post.

The spokesperson added: “Where an elected member is disqualified, a vacancy is declared in the ward and a by-election is held at a later date.”

We contacted Mr Milburn to seek clarity on the situation. He said he was not able to provide a comment at the time but would reply later that day with a statement. As yet, no statement has arrived.