Council's email profanity filter stops discussion of blue tits, slag heaps and Offa's Dyke

A council's official email filter is blocking innocent messages mentioning words with possible double-meanings. Forest of Dean Council in Gloucestershire has prevented delivery of emails with certain phrases in a bad language crackdown. District councillor Paul McMahon has tabled an official members' question after reaching his wit's end because words like blue tit and Offa's Dyke are causing electronic correspondence to be blocked.

His question says: "Why do our emails have a profanity blocking system on it? Words such as blue tit and Offa's Dyke do not offend me or, I presume, others. Will the cabinet engage with IT/Big Brother and get this ridiculous block removed. We do not need 'nannying' and can make our own minds up as to what is profane or not."



He is not the only one to have encountered trouble. Slag heaps have caused all sorts of misery to another member, Andrew Gardiner, a champion of environmental issues.

Brian Robinson, deputy leader of the council, said: "The council uses a standard spam filtering process that identifies certain words and these messages are held and the recipient is advised and if they wish to receive the message it can be released. The filters do occasionally catch messages which are harmless and this causes some concern to members, so the issue is going to be discussed at full council."