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1:23pm Friday 16th May 2008
A BRITISH National Party council candidate has been fined for sett-ing off a fire alarm which caused Burnley Town Hall to be evac-uated.
Political campaigner John Rowe, 52, had been barred from attending a meeting of Burnley's full council when the drama unfolded on Thursday night.
Moments later the fire alarm sounded and new Mayor Coun Ida Carmichael, taking her inaugural meet-ing, and fellow councillors, were asked to clear the building.
Council insiders said Mr Rowe had tried to escape via a fire exit, but found himself trapped in a courtyard inside the town hall complex, where he was later found by council officers.
Mr Rowe, of Cowper Street, Rosegrove, was later issued with an £80 fixed penalty notice for criminal damage.
But he remained defiant about his stance following the incident, amid criticism from police and political rivals.
Mr Rowe said: "I think it is completely improper and there is no justification for barring me from council meetings, and prevent me from council buildings."
He says he will be seeking legal and political advice, but that the matter "might just die a death".
Mr Rowe has accused council chief executive Steve Rumbelow of excluding him for "political reasons".
He says that if the chief executive, or council, wanted to bar him from their premises then they would need a county court injunction. "They did not do that because they know perfectly well that it would not have been granted," added Mr Rowe.
Following the town hall incident, Mr Rumbelow said: "It is not the disruption to our meeting that concerns me so much as the fact that this mindless act risked lives in other parts of Burnley.
"Our emergency services could have been needed elsewhere. This completely irresponsible act wastes taxpayers money and has put lives of Burnley folk at risk."
Sgt Martin Selway, of Burnley Police, added: "The police will take false alarms extremely seriously.
"Not only does it disrupt police and the fire service, but it causes unnecessary disruption for members of the public and potentially puts lives at risk."
A spokesman for the council's ruling Liberal Democrats said: "People were shocked by Rowe's behaviour.
"We now know that he did not intend to endanger life directly, but he must realise that his hoax has put lives at risk by distracting the fire service and police from essential duties.
"In addition to the risk, there is also the cost. Around six police officers and a fire crew attended the building.
"Forty councillors, the mayor, at least seven council staff, plus members of the public all had their demo-cratic business suspended and were forced to wait outside for the all-clear.
"How such a man is considered by the BNP as a suitable candidate for a public election is beyond us."
Intrigued, Burnley says...
10:26am Fri 16 May 08
Darren Reynolds, Burnley says...
11:19am Fri 16 May 08
YAS, BB1 says...
1:41pm Fri 16 May 08
hoodle, werk says...
1:55pm Fri 16 May 08
Doug Spencer - Spencer Fire, Bacup says...
1:58pm Fri 16 May 08
George Deighton, london says...
2:04pm Fri 16 May 08
Dave, East Lancashire says...
2:10pm Fri 16 May 08
Scumbags, Burnley says...
2:58pm Fri 16 May 08
Nick Barfoot, essex says...
3:11pm Fri 16 May 08
Lala, Burnley says...
3:26pm Fri 16 May 08
andy, spain says...
9:41pm Fri 16 May 08
Ben Smalley wrote:Well your former leader now deceased John Tyndall was once captured on a piccy under a picture of Adolph Hitler with two other brain dead individuals. He even quoted that Mein Kampth was his personal bible.
Lala wrote:Dear God, have people not yet quit calling us the Nazis!! I see you don\'t go around calling our cultured islamic friends Nazis for there vast hatred and racial actions against us. Infact.. wait... Islam wants to take over the world and have a pure race all over the world... They were also some of the biggest outside supporters of the Nazis. I don\'t know yet, but I might have stumbled upon an iceberg here. Anyone care to highlight some facts to me, for both reasons why the BNP is Nazi. Could you then give me reasons as to why the islamists are Nazis.
Please don\'t give him a box of matches or else we may have another Reichstag fire on our hands.
Thanks
Mike, Burnley says...
10:24pm Fri 16 May 08
Brian, Burnley says...
11:12pm Fri 16 May 08
Ben Smalley, Burnley says...
11:31pm Fri 16 May 08
andy wrote:OK you managed to attack the bnp... thats job 1 done.. Now can you fulfill the rest of the request and inform me of islamists connections and similarities and extremities. This is just a simple exercise then we can compare a race to 2 pieces of propaganda about the BNP if i dont hear any response from you i will automatically assume that you dont wish to declare the other facts ive asked you for.
Ben Smalley wrote:Well your former leader now deceased John Tyndall was once captured on a piccy under a picture of Adolph Hitler with two other brain dead individuals. He even quoted that Mein Kampth was his personal bible. Present leader Nick Griffin has questioned the Holocaust and quoted that it was a lot of Allied Propaganda over 6 million killed in gas chambers and made into products like lamp shades of course this was only one group the six million that was the Jews. If these quotes are not Neo-Nazism I\'m not sure what is. Regarding of the bloke who has smashed the Break Glass deliberately to get over his point of view he should of been charged with more then such a petty fine. He should be sent the following bill has an example Police salaries of the officers in attendance,Fire Officers in attendance, call out fees for the engineer who has been called out to change the break glass and to top it all the price of the break glass. So people of Burnley this can be put down to the BNP who never take part in your towns budget attacking the budget when it is produced. Please put this down on paper for the ones called the BNP who never take part in debates so they can see next year how much one of their members have cost the public of Burnley. That way they may understand budgets in the near future.Lala wrote: Please don\\\'t give him a box of matches or else we may have another Reichstag fire on our hands.Dear God, have people not yet quit calling us the Nazis!! I see you don\\\'t go around calling our cultured islamic friends Nazis for there vast hatred and racial actions against us. Infact.. wait... Islam wants to take over the world and have a pure race all over the world... They were also some of the biggest outside supporters of the Nazis. I don\\\'t know yet, but I might have stumbled upon an iceberg here. Anyone care to highlight some facts to me, for both reasons why the BNP is Nazi. Could you then give me reasons as to why the islamists are Nazis. Thanks
Funny guy, bburn says...
4:16am Sat 17 May 08
Grant, says...
5:13am Sat 17 May 08
Funny guy wrote:Why are you so apologetic about Islam, yet so biased against the BNP?
Well im no expert on islam but i can say not all of them are out there to kill or hurt or injure or hate other communities. sure theres a few but theres extremists in all walks and societies of life. where as the BNP have one aim and one moto\' if it aint white it aint right\'. Also just so that you know islam is a religion with a billion followeres worldwide, the bnp what 5 guys in burnley lol and finally islam is not racist BNP is. that says it all
Grant, says...
5:52am Sat 17 May 08
andy wrote:
Ben Smalley wrote:Well your former leader now deceased John Tyndall was once captured on a piccy under a picture of Adolph Hitler with two other brain dead individuals. He even quoted that Mein Kampth was his personal bible. Present leader Nick Griffin has questioned the Holocaust and quoted that it was a lot of Allied Propaganda over 6 million killed in gas chambers and made into products like lamp shades of course this was only one group the six million that was the Jews. If these quotes are not Neo-Nazism I'm not sure what is. Regarding of the bloke who has smashed the Break Glass deliberately to get over his point of view he should of been charged with more then such a petty fine. He should be sent the following bill has an example Police salaries of the officers in attendance,Fire Officers in attendance, call out fees for the engineer who has been called out to change the break glass and to top it all the price of the break glass. So people of Burnley this can be put down to the BNP who never take part in your towns budget attacking the budget when it is produced. Please put this down on paper for the ones called the BNP who never take part in debates so they can see next year how much one of their members have cost the public of Burnley. That way they may understand budgets in the near future.Lala wrote: Please don\'t give him a box of matches or else we may have another Reichstag fire on our hands.Dear God, have people not yet quit calling us the Nazis!! I see you don\'t go around calling our cultured islamic friends Nazis for there vast hatred and racial actions against us. Infact.. wait... Islam wants to take over the world and have a pure race all over the world... They were also some of the biggest outside supporters of the Nazis. I don\'t know yet, but I might have stumbled upon an iceberg here. Anyone care to highlight some facts to me, for both reasons why the BNP is Nazi. Could you then give me reasons as to why the islamists are Nazis. Thanks
Well your former leader now deceased John Tyndall was once captured on a piccy under a picture of Adolph Hitler with two other brain dead individuals. He even quoted that Mein Kampth was his personal bible. Present leader Nick Griffin has questioned the Holocaust and quoted that it was a lot of Allied Propaganda over 6 million killed in gas chambers and made into products like lamp shades of course this was only one group the six million that was the Jews. If these quotes are not Neo-Nazism I'm not sure what is.
familyman1, burnley says...
8:09am Sat 17 May 08
Darren Reynolds wrote:Your first here as well as the Burnley Express Darren, Anybody would think you have no home life, Good photo's though.
There\'s more to it than this - hopefully full details will appear here once he has been charged.
Health and Saftey, says...
8:35am Sat 17 May 08
Mr Rowe had tried to escape via a fire exit but had found himself trapped in a courtyard inside the town hall complex
andy, spain says...
9:44am Sat 17 May 08
Brian wrote:No Im not defending Islamic Extremists just Like I would not defend Christian Extremists nor Jewish Extremists for the simple following reason. I am Pagan and have no time for organised religions apart from possibly the real spiritualist types example Hinduism or Buddhism.
Dear God, have people not yet quit calling us the Nazis!!
If it smells like ****, you don't need to taste it...
hoodle, home again says...
10:19am Sat 17 May 08
Anon, Lancs says...
11:42am Sat 17 May 08
Rowe Deal, East Lancs says...
11:59am Sat 17 May 08
familyman1, Burnley says...
1:30pm Sat 17 May 08
Familyman1, Burnley says...
1:49pm Sat 17 May 08
Mike wrote:Mike, I am not having a pop at you but please look up facts before you talk rubbish, If you can make a simple mistake about what I am going to point out in a bit just think how it would be very easy for you to be mistaken about somthing as complex as the BNP.
To Nick Barfoot, essex and Ben Smalley: I don't have a cloth cap and don't smoke anything but I do recognise a neo-nazi movement when I see it. The incident today is just another in the string of convictions for the thugs of the BNP.
Rowe Deal, East Lancs says...
3:07pm Sat 17 May 08
Good point about saying sorry though, then we might hear all the LibDem, Labour, Tory members saying sorry every time one of theirs molests a young boy or girl, for all the police time taken up investigating these crimes
Burnley Is A S**thole, Burnley says...
3:47pm Sat 17 May 08
Familyman1, Burnley says...
3:58pm Sat 17 May 08
Rowe Deal, East Lancs says...
4:02pm Sat 17 May 08
bet the fire alarm does not need counciling.
Familyman1, Burnley says...
4:12pm Sat 17 May 08
Burnley Is A S**thole wrote:Your name gives it away, You must be either a LibDem or Labour councillor, and so proud of what you are trying to turn Burnley into that you have named yourself after it.
I'm not surprised John Rowe has been barred from Council meetings and premises. There are ways to get things done and this little man's rants and petulent outbursts are utterly pathetic. I'd bar him from Burnley and send him back to under whichever stone he crawled from!
Familyman1, Burnley says...
4:17pm Sat 17 May 08
Rowe Deal wrote:Hahaha Still have not answered the important questions though have you
bet the fire alarm does not need counciling.No, but ranting misfits who cause false alarms certainly do!
Rowe Deal, East Lancs says...
4:30pm Sat 17 May 08
Hahaha Still have not answered the important questions though have you
Familyman, Burnley says...
5:05pm Sat 17 May 08
Rowe Deal wrote:So your not even a voter then? well you have no say at all about where taxpayers money is spent or wasted,
Hahaha Still have not answered the important questions though have youWhat, you mean you want me to take you up on one of your many 'straw man' derailing tactics. TBH; I care nothing for the LibLabCon merchants and I'm certainly not going to debate any of their pass misdemeanours on a thread about some ranting BNP egit who has a passion for wasting council tax payers money, while putting lives at risk, by setting off fire alarms. Jeez. The history of this BNP branch must be an utter embarrassment to the BNP hierarchy, and that's really saying something.
Dave, uk says...
5:29pm Sat 17 May 08
Jim, Burnley says...
5:35pm Sat 17 May 08
Familyman1, Burnley says...
5:44pm Sat 17 May 08
Rowe Deal wrote:Hahaha thats you Darren, get a grip man. Meet us up Bobbin for a pint
Hahaha Still have not answered the important questions though have youWhat, you mean you want me to take you up on one of your many 'straw man' derailing tactics. TBH; I care nothing for the LibLabCon merchants and I'm certainly not going to debate any of their pass misdemeanours on a thread about some ranting BNP egit who has a passion for wasting council tax payers money, while putting lives at risk, by setting off fire alarms. Jeez. The history of this BNP branch must be an utter embarrassment to the BNP hierarchy, and that's really saying something.
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Darren Reynolds, Burnley says...
9:44am Fri 16 May 08