An Aberdeen councillor who was convicted of sexual assault has gone back on a vow to seek re-election in May.
Alan Donnelly pledged to fight to retain his Torry and Ferryhill seat in a TV interview last February.
Disgraced councillor Alan Donnelly reveals plans to leave Aberdeen for Kuwait
However, he has now told The Press And Journal that he won’t stand – and instead is seeking residency thousands of miles away in Kuwait.
A former depute provost, Mr Donnelly was suspended by the standards watchdog after being convicted of sexual assault.
In December 2019, Sheriff Ian Wallace convicted him of the attack, carried out while attending a civic function in the city in November 2018.
Mr Donnelly had denied the charges but was found guilty after trial of touching his victim’s face, hair and body and kissing him on the face.
He was sentenced to an eight-month supervision order, placed on the sex offenders register and ordered to pay his victim £800 in compensation.
Despite calls for him to resign from all parties – including his former Conservative colleagues – the now-independent returned to the council chamber last March.
Fallen out of love with Aberdeen: Alan Donnelly plans Kuwait move
Mr Donnelly has always denied his guilt, claiming to be a “pawn in a game”.
Still maintaining his innocence, the self-proclaimed “decent guy” told The P&J “the truth will come out”.
The disgraced public servant said: “I am informing you of my decision, from Kuwait, that I will not be standing in May’s election, after 30 years on and off as a councillor.
“I have spent more than 42 years in public life as a decent guy, helping people and to be treated the disgraceful way I have been has really sickened me.
“I once considered myself an adopted Scot and loved Aberdeen.
“But not any more and I am seeking residency in Kuwait, where people can meet and greet each other without being accused of sexual harassment.”
Branding Scottish politics “poisonous”, Mr Donnelly also hit out at the police, claiming mistreatment during questioning.
The former Tory stated this was another reason he could not stand for re-election, given the council’s close working relationship with the force.
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In November 2020, the Standards Commission slapped Mr Donnelly with a year-long ban, which was backdated when he was first suspended that March for his “wholly inappropriate” behaviour.
While suspended for the two breaches of the councillors’ code of conduct, he continued to receive his full pay – something the local authority said is “a legal requirement and not a decision of the council”.
The 12-month ban was the maximum punishment available to the disciplinary panel, without stripping him of his elected office.
Mr Donnelly – who was depute provost at the time of the assault – was found in breach of paragraphs 3.2 and 3.6 of the code – dictating respect and courtesy for colleagues and the public “at all times when acting as a councillor” and decreeing “bullying or harassment is completely unacceptable”.
The case – which highlighted that a councillor cannot be fired without being jailed for three months or more – has prompted the standards watchdog to consider reviewing the code of conduct for sexual offences, which are often subject to non-custodial sentences.
Liberal Democrat Aberdeen group leader Ian Yuill led the calls for the convicted sex offender to quit.
He told us: “I am very pleased to hear that Councillor Donnelly is standing down.
“However, he should have resigned immediately after he was convicted of sexual assault.”
