City councillor applies to join the Lib Dems

A FORMER Labour deputy leader of Cardiff Council has applied to join the Liberal Democrats after becoming wholly disillusioned with his former group.

Ralph Cook, who is standing down as a councillor for Trowbridge at May’s election, said he hopes to attend his final council meeting tomorrow as a member of the Lib Dem group.

He said he had undergone “a torrid three and a half years during which I experienced a total breakdown in my relations with the Labour Party and the Cardiff Labour group, a near-fatal illness and major open heart surgery, a slow recovery during 2014-15, a six-month suspension from my party group in 2015 following accusations that I broke the party whip on the Cardiff Local Transport Plan, leaving the Labour Party in April 2015 and joining the Green Party thereafter, and finally badly breaking my right leg in November 2016, just as I was getting myself back together.”

He added: “Having listened to Tim Farron’s speech at the Lib Dem Spring Conference in York, I have applied to join the Liberal Democrats and have resigned from the Green Party.

“For me, my top political priority at the moment is defeating Brexit and I believe the best way to achieve this goal is via the Liberal Democrats. I have also spent some months researching Lib Dem policies on the environment and other policies that interest me and find myself comfortable with them.

“I have informed the local party of my new affiliation and have yet to establish precisely how they feel about me joining their benches at Thursday’s meeting.”

A Cardiff Liberal Democrat spokeswoman said: “We’re delighted that Coun Ralph Cook, like so many other former Labour members before him, is seeking to join the Liberal Democrats as the only party focused on fighting Theresa May’s hard Brexit agenda and on building an open, tolerant and united country.

“Coun Cook, like former Labour councillor Manzoor Ahmed, is sick and tired of Cardiff Labour holding our city back and wants to see change. As the city’s fastestgrowing party and the only credible opposition to this failing Labour administration, the Liberal Democrats are ready to drive Cardiff forward.

“As is the process with every application of membership, the local party executive will consider Coun Cook’s application at our meeting on Wednesday evening.

“We will not make any further comment before this time.”