‘Wokingham now has a strong Labour group’
WOKINGHAM now has a ‘really, really strong group’ of Labour councillors according to its leader, Cllr Rachel Burgess.
At the 2023 local elections, her party won two seats in Norreys and Shinfield North and held Bulmershe and Whitegates. They also came within 45 votes of scooping Loddon ward.
They now have five seats in the council chamber, their highest-ever total.
Cllr Burgess was delighted with the result.
“Thank you to everyone that voted Labour, we are really, really pleased,” she said. “We’ve got a really good strong group who will work on behalf of all the residents in our wards.
“I’m really looking forward to getting going.”
For the past year, Wokingham Borough Council has been governed by the ruling partnership - an agreement between the Lib Dems, Labour and originally the two independent councillors. This enabled the Lib Dems to form a ruling executive, while Labour and the independents could chair scrutiny committees.
The council remains under no overall control and the Lib Dems could need a similar arrangement this municipal year. Will Labour be party to that?
“I need to talk to my new group,” Cllr Burgess said. “We’ve always said we will look to find agreement with other parties - we’re not going to look for disagreement.
“We will see how things go.”
■ READING EAST MP Matt Rodda is delighted with how Labour has performed in this year’s local elections in Wokingham Borough.
He said: “I’m absolutely delighted at what’s happened and so proud of all the candidates.
“We’ve never had a group this size (in Wokingham borough) and some of the victories are really quite significant.”
He added: “The whole Labour team is so impressive and it’s absolutely wonderful to have them. I’m so proud of them.”
On the way in which the council chamber has swung away from the Conservatives, he said: “I think people want to see change here and across the country.
“We’ve got some really strong candidates who work very, very hard and are well-known in their communities. They’re very popular and well-known, and they’re doing a great job.”
He felt the results in both
Reading and Wokingham, as well as across Berkshire, bode well for any forthcoming national vote.
“They show that Labour is on track to win the next general election,” he said. “It would allow us to serve the country and offer real change for people.”
He added: “We just need to work really hard and continue to campaign across the country for more local government seats and, ultimately, more parliamentary representation.”