Deputy De Lisle found to have breached code by sharing video

The complaint related to Deputy David de Lisle sharing a video on his Facebook page in April about glyphosate – a herbicide found in products like Roundup.

The panel concluded that Deputy De Lisle’s actions had not called into question the integrity of the States as a whole or members generally.

But he had breached it by sharing a video that would offend a section of the community.

‘In considering the scale of seriousness, and taking into account several mitigating factors, the panel decided that, although there was a breach of section nine, there should be no sanction for it,’ the panel stated.

The video included a graph suggesting that incidences of autism had increased with the rise in chemical farming. There was also a portrayal of someone with autism, which the complainant said was a gross and damaging impression.

In the panel’s report, Deputy De Lisle said the complaint had arisen from a misunderstanding and misinterpretation of a video documentary, which he had shared on his Facebook page. He apologised to anyone who might have been affected, as it was never his intention.

The video link was removed within 36 hours.

‘He had not realised that an infographic would appear when the video link was posted,’ the report stated.

‘He simply wanted to promote the message in the video itself, attacking the use of glyphosate. The video had received over a million views and over 68,000 likes so he assumed that it was proper.’

Deputy De Lisle told the panel he had needed help to post the video and had removed it after getting an email with concerns about it.

He added that he had contacted the author of the video to tell him about the infographic. A new infographic was now being used.

In coming to its ruling, the panel said that Deputy De Lisle was not aware of the existence of the infographic until it was drawn to his attention.

‘He had no intention to offend or to be disrespectful to any individuals or sections of the community,’ it said.

‘The breach was wholly inadvertent. This was therefore a mitigating factor.’

Deputy De Lisle has been a member of the States for 18 years and the panel noted that he had extensive experience as a deputy. The panel noted that he had not uploaded the video himself.

‘As such, the unacceptable part [the infographic] was posted unwittingly without Deputy De Lisle’s knowledge or approval. While some criticism can be levelled against Deputy De Lisle for failing to check the post himself, overall, the fact that the infographic appeared inadvertently was a mitigating factor.’

The panel was made up of Allister Langlois, Louise Hall and Mick Fooks.