A MAJOR row has broken out after claims that police took nearly a hour to react after a youth allegedly with a gun was spotted outside Gillingham Municipal Buildings. And a Medway councillor has been accused of making defamatory remarks about the council’s chief executive Judith Armitt amid allegations of slack security around the council building.

Liberal Democrat Cllr Alan Jefferies wrote to Mrs Armitt demanding that safety be stepped up following the incident. Police have denied their response time was slow. The letter was copied to all Medway councillors and to Supt Giles York, Medway police commander. It has also been leaked to the Medway Today newspaper.

Mrs Armitt furiously denies Cllr Jefferies’ claims that in a recent speech she gave the impression that she viewed vandalism, street drunkenness and fly-tipping as “disruptions” rather than crime. A council spokesman said: “Judith Armitt views this as defamatory; she simply did not say that.”

It is not believed that Mrs Armitt will be taking legal action but she has asked Cllr Jefferies to withdraw his comments. The row has blown up following a claim by Cllr Jefferies that two weeks ago a youth with a gun was caught on a council CCTV camera.

In his letter, Cllr Jefferies claims that it took police 50 minutes to arrive after staff dialled 999 to report the incident. But Chief Insp Steve Hansford, of Medway police, denied the allegation. He said: “Details for the incident involving the youth show the call was received at 18.15 hours and that a police patrol arrived at 18.28 hours, giving a response time of 13 minutes.

“An earlier call was received by the police. The caller stated that he was leaving the area and that the alleged offenders had “wandered off”, thus making a police patrol unnecessary.”

In his letter, dated November 8, Cllr Jefferies also alleges that the council has still not honoured its pledges to install an extra CCTV camera. The council spokesman denied Cllr Jefferies’ claims. He said: “An extra camera has been installed and home visits to the youths have started.”

Cllr Jefferies declined to comment.