‘Strong smell’ forces councillors to abandon meeting

The meeting was being held at the Shoreham Centre

Councillors had to abandon a meeting following complaints of a ‘strong solvent smell’ and stinging eyes.

Adur and Worthing councils’ joint overview and scrutiny committee chair Joss Loader (Ind., Marine) paused the meeting on Thursday (October 13) after an hour and twenty minutes because some councillors were ‘clearly struggling’ in the QEII room at the Shoreham Centre.

Debs Stainforth (Lab, Southlands) said her eyes were ‘stinging’ and that she was ‘feeling slightly lightheaded’.

Ms Loader said the problem might have been down to newly painted pipework. “I can really smell it,” she said, “I’ve noticed a few people coughing. It does smell rather like a glue sniffer’s den. Not that I’ve been in one, I might add. We’ll start the next agenda item and if it’s no better, I don’t think we can continue in this room.”

The meeting had to be abandoned because of the solvent-like smell

Some of the agenda was covered before the meeting was ultimately abandoned an hour and a half in. Among items covered were interviews with the chief executive and Worthing’s cabinet member for citizens services, and a review of the night-time economy, which was moved up the agenda as it was considered time-sensitive.

But councillors voted to abandon the meeting shortly afterwards, meaning that interviews with the chairman of the Adur and Worthing Safer Communities Partnership and the Adur cabinet member for communities and well-being will have to be rescheduled, along with the annual summary of customer feedback will also have to be heard at a later date.

Adur District Council’s full meeting is due to take place in the same room on Thursday (20 October). The councils have been approached for comment.