A standards investigator is being urged to request access to the devices of Warwickshire County Council leader George Finch and his political assistant to prove who defamed a political rival.

Warwickshire County Council has commissioned Kirsty Cole of legal practice Bevan Brittan to consider complaints that Cllr Finch breached the county council's code of conduct by publishing on social media an image that portrayed Cr Jan Matecki as a burglar.

Cllr Finch took sole responsibility for creating and posting the image to Reform UK's social media platforms in January this year, and for sharing it from his own accounts with the caption: "As we say at County Hall, if you leave it to Jan it'll hit the fan."

Having discovered that the council is funding the external investigation, Cllr Scott Cameron revealed that he filed a complaint about Reform UK political assistant Jack Parker with his line manager in early March 2026.

His concerns included circumstantial evidence in support of his belief that Mr Parker was responsible for the posts. Cllr Cameron says he has yet to receive a response.

Cllr Cameron defected from Reform UK in February citing what he described as "backbiting, vitriol, bullying (and) slander" in his parting shot. Cllr Finch and his then-deputy Cllr Stephen Shaw vehemently contested his version of events.

Social media accounts representing Reform UK councillors on Warwickshire County Council appeared around the time that Mr Parker is known to have taken up his position. He is employed and paid for by the council.

The assistants are politically restricted in most of the ways that other council officers are but have dispensation to "speak to the public with the intention of affecting support for a political party" and "publish… work or other material intended to affect public support for a political party". They are not allowed to give the impression they directly represent that party.

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Cllr Cameron told the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) he and other members of Reform UK were informed that Mr Parker would control the party's social media accounts and that he was never made aware of anyone else having access to the group's social media pages during his time with Reform.

"We were told verbally that Jack had set up the various social media accounts and as part of being the political assistant that he would be running them. He took that on to promote Reform in Warwickshire," he said.

Cllr Cameron explained how the language used in posts about Cllr Matecki had led him to believe Mr Parker had been responsible because the council's Shire Hall headquarters was incorrectly referred to as 'County Hall' in Cllr Finch's post shares.

"I didn't speak to Jack too often but when I did and he mentioned Shire Hall, he would call it County Hall," said Cllr Cameron.

"George would call it Shire Hall, never County Hall. I have no doubt that the post was from Jack."

Making the point that Mr Parker is an employee "at great expense to the council", Cllr Cameron believes that he and Cllr Finch should permit access to their personal and council devices.

"It would be one thing to post derogatory comments about elected members when you are an employed council officer, it would be another thing to do it from a council-owned device," he added.

"Everything should be time and date stamped. If you have done nothing wrong, you have nothing to hide."

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Cllr Finch was unavailable for a full interview but told the LDRS that these complaints, which are known to have been filed by at least three councillors from two different authorities and two different parties, were his to face and his alone.

He stood by the comments he made in January when he was questioned on who was responsible.

In January, Cllr Finch acknowledged that Mr Parker "does post on that Facebook page" but insisted that had not been the case on this occasion.

He said "I take responsibility" for the content. Asked whether he had personally created and posted the image, Cllr Finch replied: "I created it."

Asked to clarify whether he had also posted it, Cllr Finch said: "I created and posted it, yeah."

Mr Parker was approached for comment twice but did not respond.