Level pegging as Labour win council by-election
MAIN PARTIES EACH HAVE 16 SEATS AFTER CLOSE VOTE
LABOUR has won a by-election victory in a Derbyshire town, beating the Conservatives by a few dozen votes.
A by-election had been held in the Midway ward on South Derbyshire District Council after the incumbent councillor, David Angliss, resigned.
Two candidates had contested the Midway by-election – Labour’s Louise Mulgrew and the Conservatives’ Barry Appleby, previously a UKIP candidate. Turnout was a lowly 18.48 per cent, with just 1,154 votes cast in total, with Ms Mulgrew gaining 600 votes to Mr Appleby’s 540 votes – a victory by 60 votes.
The win means that Labour and the Conservatives both now have 16 councillors each on the district council, alongside two Independent Group councillors and two independents. Labour currently controls the authority after a key vote in May, backed by a number of former Conservatives. This result represents a further potential shift in the balance of power.
The leader of the council’s Conservative group said the Midway by-election loss was a result of voter disappointment at previous infighting among the Tories. Cllr Mulgrew, 48, a school cleaner, told the Local Democracy Reporting Service: “I am very pleased. They have voted for a local person, finally.
“On the doorstep people have been talking about what has been going on in Parliament, from Partygate to lying and
Brexit as well. I wanted to follow in my father’s footsteps, I have been through this process with him, all the campaigning, and I wanted to do it myself, and hopefully I can do as good a job as he does.”
Louise’s father, Mick Mulgrew, has represented Swadlincote ward on the district council since 2019. She said she was looking forward to working hard to protect the environment and reduce pollution. Cllr Mulgrew joins fellow Labour members Paul Dunn and Robert Pearson, as the representatives for the Midway ward on the district council.
Cllr Kevin Richards, Labour leader of the authority: “I am very pleased that Louise Mulgrew has been successful in her campaign to become the elected member for the vacant Midway ward seat. Louise will be an excellent ward councillor, joining her fellow councillors, combining her dedication, honesty and integrity to the team. I look forward to welcoming her to the council.”
Asked what he felt contributed to the Labour win, Cllr Richards said: “Johnson’s antics, Partygate, lying to the Queen, misleading Parliament, not helping small businesses and residents with cost of living crisis…the list goes on.
“With Louise we have a straight-talking, committed, dedicated and positive candidate with fresh ideas and a willingness to help residents.”
Cllr Peter Smith, leader of the council’s Conservative Group, said: “We are obviously disappointed with the result. We are also disappointed with the turnout. To have less than 1,150 votes cast is very low indeed.
“It was interesting speaking to people on the doorstep, I think a lot of it was to do with what had been going on locally. We had some fallouts in the (Conservative) group, about personal issues, and I think residents were disappointed in what had gone on.
“The falling out wasn’t about policies, it was about personalities. Barry (Appleby) was a very strong candidate and is well-known in the area, but this is a democracy and we need to work harder to reconnect with the community in and around Midway.
“With a turnout as low as we have got, people obviously don’t feel connected to what is going on locally.”
Asked whether he felt the result was related to national politics, Cllr Smith said: “That was certainly not raised with me on the doorstep, it was all about local issues, what happened in the party locally.
“The murder in Swadlincote is still fresh in people’s minds too, as well as crime and anti-social behaviour, making Swadlincote a safer place to live and reassuring residents that it is a safe place to live.”
Mr Angliss, who resigned in May, had been elected as a Conservative councillor in 2019 but left the group in late 2020 to form an Independent Group of six Conservative councillors.
In January, the Local Democracy Reporting Service revealed that Mr Angliss has been cleared over the sharing of a “grotesque” and “offensive” abortion meme, about a then fellow former Conservative, with other Tory councillors. A key council vote in May saw votes from former Conservatives kept the Tories from leading the authority, with Labour retaining control.
Labour took control of the authority in January 2021 after a number of resignations in the Conservative party caused by infighting.
With Louise we have a straight-talking, committed, dedicated and positive candidate.
Cllr Kevin Richards