THE LABOUR deputy mayor of Liverpool has temporarily stepped down from her post after she was caught holding a birthday party with friends and family in the middle of lockdown.
Video footage of councillor Lynnie Hinnigan, uploaded on to Instagram on 9 May, showed 12 people gathered outside her house.
The Labour party said she had “voluntarily and temporarily” stepped down from her duties while the event being investigated.
Hinnigan, who became one of three deputies to the Liverpool mayor Joe Anderson in 2018, told the Liverpool Echo the event had been secretly arranged by her daughter, and that family and friends had only come to drop off gifts.
“I really wasn’t aware that it was happening, it was genuinely a surprise,” she said. “Everyone is finding lockdown hard, not seeing family and friends, but everyone should still follow the rules, stay alert, stay safe and socially distance, which is exactly what I told my daughter and the reason I never left the house.
“I am sorry if this has hurt anyone as it was never mine or my daughter’s intention. Many other families in our city have struggled throughout this period, we still need to follow the guidance until we can meet face to face again.”
In a statement, councillor Ruth Bennett, the chief whip of the Liverpool Labour group, said: “We have received emails regarding Lynnie Hinnigan and can confirm that she is being investigated.
“In the meantime, she has, in agreement with the mayor, voluntarily and temporarily stepped down from her council roles with immediate effect during the investigation into her actions.”
Leader of the Lib Dem opposition, councillor Richard Kemp, has called for Hinnigan's resignation. He said: "Those of us in public life must set an example."
He added that it was "vital that swift action is taken when elected representatives of any party transgress clear guidelines for behaviour at this crucial time".
"We cannot demand hard actions from the people of Liverpool yet adopt a different attitude when it comes to our own behaviour," he added.
Hinnigan is not the only Liverpool Labour councillor to have broken lockdown rules.
Cllr Barry Kushner was pictured having a gathering with multiple family members on land at their home in Allerton over the early May Bank Holiday, while the strictest lockdown rules were in place.
He has been suspended.
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