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Steph Booth 'dictated the blog to me': Worker says he was coerced into discrediting former candidate
LABOUR'S parliamentary candidate for the Calder Valley coerced a work colleague into attempting to discredit previous candidate Janet Oosthuysen, a tribunal was told.
According to David Sutcliffe, Steph Booth dictated what he should write on a newspaper website.
He told the hearing he later wrote to the Labour Party after becoming concerned his blog might have led to Ms Oosthuysen being deselected.
Mr Sutcliffe said he was concerned for his job if he did not do as he was told by Mrs Booth, who was company development director.
He said she dictated the blog, which referred to Janet Oosthuysen's criminal past and he said he used a pseudonym.
Mr Sutcliffe is a support teacher with Burnley-based Cool UK, against which Mrs Booth, of Todmorden, has brought an action following her redundancy.
Mr Sutcliffe also alleged that Mrs Booth encouraged people to take part in a newspaper poll.
"The claimant wanted people to vote to boost her credibility in Calderdale," he said.
Mr Sutcliffe told the tribunal that he had informed company boss Gareth Binding what had happened.
Under cross-examination from Laura Prince, representing Mrs Booth, he said he later revealed what he had done because he felt guilty about Janet Oosthuysen.
Ms Prince alleged he made up the story out of loyalty to Mr Binding after he asked if anyone had any "dirt" on Mrs Booth.
She told the Manchester hearing that Mr Sutcliffe had received a final warning for purchasing DVDs at work when he could have been sacked by Mr Binding.
"It's fabrication made up to damage the claimant's reputation" said Ms Prince.
Proceeding
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Saturday 04 February 2012
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