The Conservatives on Cotswold District Council are in deep water after describing local Liberal Democrat councillors as morons on Facebook.
Tory council leader Lynden Stowe and fellow councillor Chris Roberts said that local Lib Dem rivals "have a reputation... for being morons" on Facebook. The comments were then reported to the press by friends of the councillors, rather than by any Liberal Democrat members.
Despite this, rather than apologising the Conservatives have gone on the defensive accusing the Lib Dems of stirring up trouble and complaining that Facebook must have been infiltrated by Lib Dem sympathisers. The comments have now been reported on the BBC website, on local TV news and on the front page of the local newspaper.
Local Lib Dem Leader Paul Hodgkinson is now considering whether to report the Conservative councillors to the Standards Board for England.
