DEPUTY mayor Nick Martin has completed the training element of his sanction for behaving inappropriately towards a senior officer at the civic dinner.

Coun Martin (Con, Shaw), breached the council’s protocol of member/officer relations by briefly touching the back of Helen Miah’s head and describing its style as a DA – ‘duck’s a**e’ – during the annual social function at Steam in 2011.

The former cabinet member was told to write a letter of apology to Mrs Miah and undertake training from the council’s monitoring officer, Stephen Taylor, on the operation of the protocol.

It came after the council’s standards committee’s hearings panel found in October that he had used inappropriate language and had been too familiar towards Mrs Miah, who was then head of culture.

In a written response to a public question from Brian Cockbill, of Stratton, at Thursday’s full council meeting, Coun Rod Bluh, the council leader, confirmed Coun Martin had completed the training and said he understood it was a “constructive and positive discussion.”

Coun Martin told the panel in October he approached Mrs Miah to say hello, and might have raised his finger to point at her hairstyle and say words to the effect ‘that’s a new hairstyle, that’s Mary Quant, that takes me back a long time’.

But he denied touching her or making inappropriate comments.