Tamworth Borough Council asks to postpone elections
The leader of the Labour-run authority has written to the government to ask for the May elections to be postponed
A Staffordshire council set to be abolished in two years has asked to postpone its elections. A third of the seats on Tamworth Borough Council were due to be contested in the local elections on May 7.
The borough council, along with nine other authorities in Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent, are facing abolition as part of local government reorganisation (LGR). Carol Dean, the leader of the Labour-run authority, has written to the government to ask for the May elections to be postponed, saying this will allow the council to focus on LGR.
She said this had not been an easy decision but insisted the council was taking a ‘pragmatic’ approach. Councils in Staffordshire are due to be replaced by new unitary authorities in 2028, meaning councillors elected this year may only serve half their terms.
In December the government told councils that it could agree to postpone elections in areas affected by LGR. Local government minister Alison McGovern said some authorities had raised concerns over capacity issues, although she insisted that no council would be forced to postpone elections.
Authorities were given until January 15 to make their case on the issue. Simon Tagg, leader of Conservative-run Newcastle Borough Council, announced last month that there were no plans to postpone the authority’s scheduled all-out election on May 7.
Cllr Dean said she taken the decision to ask for the postponement after consulting with group leaders and opposition members.
She said: “This has not been an easy decision. Democratic accountability matters greatly to us, and in normal circumstances we would always want elections to proceed as planned. However, we need to take a balanced and pragmatic approach to how we best serve Tamworth residents as we prepare for local government reorganisation.
“The government have indicated they will be consulting about local government reorganisation for Staffordshire from early February, which will shape and decide how services are delivered to our communities for years to come. By postponing May’s elections, we can focus our capacity on getting reorganisation right and continue to work with other Staffordshire councils to effectively prepare for the shadow unitary authority elections in May 2027.
“Our focus remains on delivering high-quality services to residents and ensuring Tamworth is well-represented as we move towards the new unitary council.”
The ruling Labour group on Tamworth Borough Council currently has 16 members, with five Tamworth Independents, four Conservatives, two Independent Group councillors, one independent councillor and one independent Green councillor.
Of the 10 seats which were due to be contested in May, the Conservatives won seven and Labour won two four years ago, with one independent also being elected.
Cabinet members at Newcastle Borough Council confirmed the decision to press ahead with the local elections at their meeting this week.
Cllr Tagg said: “We’re going to write a letter to the government saying we wish the elections to go ahead. We see no reason why they shouldn’t. This will be the third year in a row that I’ve stood for election. I’m not going to be running away from elections. Preparations for the elections are already underway. We have parish elections taking place on the same day no matter what, so the money savings would be miniscule.”
Cannock Chase District Council is also due to have elections on May 7, but has yet to confirm whether these will go ahead.