Gloucester remains with Conservatives

» THE Conservatives have retained control of Gloucester City Council with an extended majority.

The Tories now hold 26 of the 39 seats while the Liberal Democrats have ten and Labour three.

Deputy Conservative group leader Hannah Norman said she was delighted with the result which she sees as a vote of confidence in the Tory administration’s plans.

“The support we’ve received from residents shows that they believe in our plans for Gloucester and that we have not run out of ideas,” she said.

“It shows that they support our development plans for King’s Square and we have more plans to come.

“As a female, I’m also glad we have a more diverse group of councillors which is better representative of Gloucester.”

Liberal Democrat deputy group leader Declan Wilson said he was delighted his party gained a seat in Longlevens.

But he said he had concerns over the Conservatives having gained a majority.

“Overall, I’m pleased we held all our seats and gained an extra one,” he said.

“We need a good opposition in Gloucester and I’m sure we will work well with Labour to hold the ruling group to account.”

Former Labour group leader Kevin Stephens, who lost his Moreland seat, said it was a devastating result for his party in the city but he vowed to come back fighting.

“Obviously, the results have been very devastating for Labour in Gloucester, there’s no getting away from that,” he said.

“It’s time to rebuild so that we can come back fighting.”