A Plaid Cymru councillor who was suspended by his party after questioning facts and figures about the Covid pandemic did not breach his authority’s code of conduct, writes Gareth Hughes.

Michelle Morris, Public Services Ombudsman for Wales, has rejected a complaint lodged by a member of the public against Gruffydd Williams, who represents Nefyn on Gwynedd County Council.

He was suspended by the party in January 2021 after sharing material on his personal Facebook account casting doubt on the scale of the pandemic and efficacy of the vaccines. His postings also contained links to others questioning the number of deaths.

Cllr Williams, who was first elected as an independent member in 2012 then joined Llais Gwynedd before switching to Plaid Cymru in 2015, expressed the same views on an S4C news programme. He said: “There are too many questions that remain unanswered”, but in suspending him pending an investigation his party said there was “no place for misinformation”.

The former chief executive of the council and Cllr Williams himself were both interviewed regarding the complaint.

The councillor is not named in the newly-published report which states: “The ombudsman found that the member was entitled to freedom of expression and to hold and express his views regarding the Covid-19 pandemic and the Covid-19 vaccine (under Article 10 of the European Convention on Human Rights, which is incorporated into UK law by the Human Rights Act 1998).

“The member’s right to free speech allowed him to say things that may have been shocking or offensive to some people.

“The former chief executive’s evidence suggested that the member was not representing the ‘council’s position’.

“The member did not issue directions to members of the public in contravention of the public health measures in place at the time. Therefore, the ombudsman did not consider there to be evidence that the member breached the Code of Conduct.”