The leader of Bucks County Council (BCC) has been forced to apologise after ‘liking’ a Tweet which compared the district council to a serial killer – in the same day the chief urged councillors to avoid “name calling” as ‘super council’ discussions continue.

It is unclear what the deleted tweet said, however Gerrards Cross Online said Martin Tett ‘liked’ a post which compared South Bucks District Council to Harold Shipman yesterday (April 12).

The doctor was convicted in 2000 of killing 15 of his patients with lethal heroin injections – and was ordered to serve life in prison for each of the murders.

Cllr Tett defended the move on Twitter, saying he did not see the “distasteful” comment about Shipman at the bottom of the Tweet and “apologised unreservedly”.


Responding on Twitter, the councillor said: “Agree with you. Totally distasteful. I apologise unreservedly.

“A lesson in reading all of everything carefully on Twitter before ‘liking’”.

Speaking to the Bucks Free Press, the councillor added: “What I didn’t realise there was a block of white space underneath and there was a separate line about Shipman. As soon as it was brought to my attention I apologised.

“This is not what I do. It is not me, it is not my style of politics.”

The incident happened on the same day Cllr Tett urged district councils to “work together” with BCC on plans for a ‘super council’, and to avoid any “personality driven criticisms and name calling”.

Relationships between the county and district councils have been strained after Government backed BCC’s proposals for single-unitary plans in the county.

Wycombe, South Bucks, Chiltern and Aylesbury Vale district councils submitted a rival proposal for two unitary authorities - which the Government has not supported.