Glastonbury Town Council has broken its silence over the suspension of a local councillor linked to a white supremacist dating site.

Conservative councillor Lillith Osborn, who represents St John's Ward, was suspended by her party after her name appeared in leaked data from the far-right platform WhiteDate.

Now the town council has responded — but refused to be drawn on the row, saying it was "inappropriate to comment on an ongoing matter".

The council declined to comment directly on the situation, stating: "It is inappropriate to comment on an ongoing matter. Glastonbury's Town Councillors are bound by the Town Council's adopted Code of Conduct, which is available on our website. Complaints about all Councillors and Standards Issues in Somerset are considered by the Monitoring Officer at Somerset Council."

A spokesperson said all councillors are bound by the town's Code of Conduct and that any complaints must be made through Somerset Council's Monitoring Officer. The code is publicly available via the council's website.

It comes after Glastonbury and Somerton MP Sarah Dyke publicly called on Cllr Osborn to resign, branding the revelation "disgusting" and adding: "There must be no tolerance for racism and bigotry of this kind — in Glastonbury or anywhere."

A Conservative Party spokesman told The Observer: "Councillor Lillith Osborn has been suspended pending investigation by the Conservative Party. The Conservative Party has robust procedures in place to handle complaints. This process is rightfully confidential."

The Observer reported that Cllr Osborn's profile appeared in a partial data leak after a hacker took down WhiteDate and affiliated sites live on stage at a German security conference.

advertisement

The paper said the profile was created in 2020 and listed her interests as "pro‑white" and "indigenous European spirituality". Cllr Osborn reportedly told the paper she had visited the site "once or twice" for research and had mixed-race children.

She remains a sitting councillor unless she resigns or is removed through official process.

More local stories:

• Plans for new‑look Strode College go before council

• Street shopping centre canopy to be demolished

Sign up to our free local newsletter — Our top stories in your inbox every Friday.