Basildon Conservative councillors have been accused of being out of control and unruly during committee meetings.

Labour councillor Gavin Callaghan, who is chairman of the policy and resources committee, alleged Tory councillors have behaved unprofessionally during council debates.

He said it has been an ongoing issue, which he will bring up at the standards committee.

He said: “The behaviour of the Conservative councillors is now well out of control.

“They are shouting and arguing with one another, hurling verbal abuse at colleagues and screaming at chairman from the public gallery during debate. They’re incapable of articulate debate.

“When the council is entertaining external partners, each councillor, regardless of which party, is tasked with being an ambassador for the council.”

He described their behaviour as reminiscent of the Bullingdon Club, an Oxford students’ club famed for its boisterous rituals.

Mr Callaghan added: “Sadly the Conservative Party seek to embarrass the council. I will continue to call out their aggressive and rude behaviour towards fellow councillors and officers.

“The standards committee is currently reviewing standards procedures, I would recommend sanctions on members who have breached the council’s code of conduct, and bar them from them sitting on certain committees.”

Councillor Phil Turner, leader of the Tories, slammed Mr Callaghan’s accusations as ridiculous.

He said: “Whenever Tory councillors try to voice our concerns on issues we get silenced. At committee meetings we can only voice our concerns once, and there will not be other chances to speak more.

“For example when we were debating about the local council tax setting for residents living with a disability, our concerns were muted. Councillor Callaghan has shown a lack of leadership and democracy.”

Tory councillor Andrew Schrader, representing Billericay East, said: “It’s absolutely preposterous. Councillor Callaghan is prone to making accusations that have no evidence. If he has evidence he should be specific and bring it up to the standards committee.”