First chance to vote for council

Bucks: Inaugural elections for new unitary authority

Voters in Buckinghamshire will be deciding who will sit in the new unitary council at the first election for the Buckinghamshire Council on Thursday, May 6.

The new Buckinghamshire Council is broken up into a series of wards covering the unitary area.

Each ward is also part of a wider 'local area', of which there are three in the entire county: Chiltern and South Bucks; Wycombe, and Aylesbury Vale.

Last year's election, scheduled for May 2020, was cancelled due to the pandemic which makes next week's vote a key one, with it being the first chance that Bucks residents have had to vote in their councillors.

A total of three councillors with the highest number of votes will be elected to each ward, and all ballot papers will be verified on Friday, May 7.

The count and announcement of results will take place at various counting

sites on Saturday, May 8, at about 11.30am.

The Conservatives will be looking to keep control of the council and increase their majority in May.

They are up against councillors representing Labour, the Liberal Democrats, The Green Party, Reform UK, the Freedom Alliance party, and several independents.

The Tories in Bucks say that they will keep council tax lower than their rivals, fix potholes quickly and want to put emphasis on recycling and bin collections.

Labour says that its candidates will ‘scrutinise, oppose and insist that the green agenda is at the forefront’ of the council’s priorities.

The Green Party has promised to conserve green spaces, campaign for clean air and ‘stop cuts to social services’.

The Lib Dems want to address the climate emergency and environmental issues, and focus on shortcomings with Bucks’ roads and pavements.

Reform UK says that its whip-free councillors should be given ‘greater power’ but ‘more accountability’ and wants more to be done with council taxpayers’ cash, such as fixing potholes.

Freedom Alliance says its candidates will ‘champion freedom, human rights and medical freedoms’, and oppose lockdowns and vaccine passports.

While the independent candidates in Bucks – some of whom are part of the

Keep Bourne End Green campaign group, which opposes development on the greenbelt – want to fight against unsustainable housing and address parking and traffic issues.