A LABOUR councillor has quit the party claiming she has been the victim of bullying within the Bury group.

Cllr Annette McKay will now serve as an independent after confirming she is resigning the Labour whip.

The Moorside ward councillor says she was frozen out by a number of councillors after she resigned as deputy cabinet member for communities and safer neighbourhoods in April last year.

An investigation by the national Labour Party has thrown out the allegations, while the council’s deputy leader, Cllr Andrea Simpson, says she “rejects entirely” Cllr McKay’s claims.

But 64-year-old Cllr McKay she says she is leaving the party she has served since she was in her 20s after the behaviour became “intolerable”.

In a letter to Bury party whip Cllr David Jones, which refers to an email she sent to the Bury Labour group in April, she said: “This is notice of my intention to resign the Labour whip with immediate effect. I have resigned from the Labour Party and I will sit as an independent councillor in order to carry on serving the people of Moorside who elected me.

“You will be aware of the barrage of hostile emails I received from members of the Labour group, sent in response to my email in which I referred to the bullying I was experiencing.”

She added: “This was the final straw. There was no care for any effect this could have had on my mental health.”

She added: “Not one email even considered that anything I said might be true. This from people who profess to espouse the values of fairness and equality. In particular two emails were particularly vitriolic and may well be libellous.”

And Cllr McKay, says the experience has left her so stressed she now takes anti-depressants.

She told the Bury Times: “It’s dreadful, I never imagined I would be in a situation where I sat in my car and would cry with stress before meetings, because I had to be in a room with grown men and women that have sent me to Coventry.”

And she added: “The Labour Party has dismissed my complaint, but I no longer care what the Labour Party says, I know what happened.

“I would not take myself out for some trivial reason, I feel this is the end of the line, I can’t stay for my mental health.”

Andrea Simpson – Deputy Leader of Bury Labour Group said she was “saddened” by Cllr McKay’s decision to resign the Labour whip.

She said: “As the most senior woman in Bury Labour Group I reject entirely the accusation of a culture of bullying directed towards women.

"Bury Labour Group is one of the few that is made up of a majority of women, with women holding some of the most senior roles in the council.”

A Labour Group spokesperson added: “Any allegations made have been thoroughly investigated by the national Labour Party and have been dismissed as being without foundation. Rather than being treated poorly Cllr McKay was empowered and appointed to high profile roles such as the deputy cabinet member for communities (in her first year as an elected member) and the deputy cabinet member for health and Wellbeing.

“As she has acknowledged in her own resignation letter she herself was the subject of complaints about her behaviour by former colleagues, and specifically concerns were raised about her comments about the transgender community.”

But Conservative group leader Cllr James Daly said he sympathised with Cllr McKay.

He said: “I find it very sad and incredibly disappointing that a decent, hard-working local councillor appears to have been forced out of Bury Labour Party because of bullying from serving Labour councillors.

“I hope that, rather than tolerating this behaviour, other councillors will support their colleagues and clear out this appalling behaviour.

“Nobody should have to tolerate such conduct and its important that all members of Bury Council take a firm and robust stand against this.”