As Tatton Park basked in bright sunshine today, Cllr Stewart Gardiner (Knutsford) took up his first official duties as Cheshire East Council’s new Conservative Group Leader and Leader of the Opposition. Cllr Liz Wardlaw (Odd Rode) was in support as the new Deputy Conservative Group Leader.
In a crowded Tenants’ Hall this afternoon, the elected members of Cheshire East Council were asked to first elect Cllr Nick Mannion (Lab) as Leader and Cllr Michael Gorman (Ind) as Deputy Leader of Council.
As in the previous six years, the Labour and Independent groups continue to vote together as a coalition administration, in order to maintain their control of the Council.
In his response to the nominations, Cllr Gardiner stated that whilst the Conservative Opposition will always seek to work in collaboration with the administration where appropriate, it was his role and that of the Opposition, to hold the Labour-Independent administration to account, for those decisions that impact poorly on residents, or that continue to fail in supporting the medium and longer-term sustainability of the Council.
At a time when the Labour-Independent Administration have failed to address at pace the concerns and recommendations of the Local Government Corporate Peer Challenge Report, are dependent on borrowing Exceptional Financial Support (which must be paid back with interest over the next two decades), and still have a SEND DSG debt of over £110m, it is clear that this administration is failing.
This dire situation has been further acknowledged by the issuing of a Non-Statutory Best Value Notice by the Labour Government (Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government), just last week. This Notice identifies the Government’s significant concerns regarding Cheshire East’s finances, governance and culture.
Until the Labour and Independent Groups acknowledge their failures over the past six years, during which time, the Council’s finances have slipped into a quagmire of debt and over-spending, Cllr Gardiner stated that the Conservative Group were unable to support their Leaders’ election as Leaders of the Council.
As a new Group and Opposition Leader, he further stated that he would not seek the role as Leader of the Council at this time, but would consider this should the Labour and Independent Groups fail to address the issues that they and their predecessor group leaders have created.
(Cllr Mannion and Cllr Gorman were duly elected: 41 FOR, 33 AGAINST, 3 ABSTAINED)
