Ex-Barnet mayor Brian Coleman stripped of committee duties

The ex-mayor of a London borough has been stripped of his council committee duties after being accused of assault.

Brian Coleman, 51, former Barnet mayor and ex-London Assembly member, is to be tried on charges of assault by beating and careless driving.

At a Barnet Council meeting, councillors voted to remove him as chairman of a budget committee.

Mr Coleman, who remains a councillor despite being suspended by the Conservatives, denies the allegations.

He pleaded not guilty to the charges against him during a hearing at Uxbridge Magistrates' Court on Monday and is due back in court on 6 February.

The decision by the council means he will no longer chair the budget and performance overview and scrutiny committee or represent Barnet as one of seven local authorities on the North London Waste Authority.

He has also been replaced as a substitute on two council sub-committees.

He was suspended from the Conservative Party, pending the outcome of the case.

Mr Coleman lost his seat in May's London Assembly elections, after 12 years at City Hall.