A DUP councillor has been suspended for three months by a standards watchdog over a Facebook comment in which he said Sinn Féin's Michelle O'Neill would be "put back in her kennel".
John Carson posted the remark about the Sinn Féin vice-president in April last year during the DUP's leadership contest between Sir Jeffrey Donaldson and Edwin Poots.
The outspoken Ballymena councillor faced widespread criticism for the "misogynistic" comment, which was posted under an image backing Mr Poots for the party leadership.
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A complaint was made to the Local Government Ethical Standards Directorate and an investigation report sent to the Acting Commissioner for his consideration.
Acting Commissioner Ian Gordon decided that Mr Carson had breached the councillors' code of conduct by making an "abusive" comment.
He found no evidence, despite Mr Carson's description, that the comment related to political issues.
Instead, Mr Gordon considered that the wording was an unreasonable personal attack on Ms O’Neill with a "misogynistic" tone.
He was satisfied the conduct was likely to diminish the trust and confidence the public placed in Mr Carson's position as an elected representative for Mid and East Antrim Borough Council.
Mr Gordon determined that a member of the public would reasonably consider that the councillor's conduct brought his position into disrepute.
He also found that Mr Carson had failed to comply with the 'respect principle' which underpins the code.
The acting commissioner considered mitigating factors in the case, including an apology Mr Carson posted on Facebook.
His apology read: "In hindsight I realise I have caused offence by a robust comment made in anger. I retract the comment and apologise accordingly."
However, the commissioner felt the apology was "half-hearted" and not a personal apology to Ms O’Neill. He concluded that the councillor had not shown meaningful hindsight into his actions.
Mr Carson has no previous record of breaching the code of conduct, but it is not the first time he has faced criticism over his online comments.
During the Covid-19 pandemic, he was accused of spreading "dangerous misinformation" in his reasons for refusing a vaccine.
He also caused controversy for claiming the pandemic was God's judgement for abortion law reforms and legalising same-sex marriage in Northern Ireland.
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