Lib Dems in Essex suggest leadership change

6 hours ago

Simon DedmanEssex political reporter

News image — The Liberal Democrats increased their share of council seats in England, but this was not represented in Essex

PA Media Ed Davey a middle aged man holding up his hands with a joyful expression. He is wearing a suit and tie. There is green foliage behind him. — The Liberal Democrats increased their share of council seats in England, but this was not represented in Essex

Senior Liberal Democrats in Essex have suggested it could be time for Sir Ed Davey to make way for a new leader.

The party gained 155 extra council seats in England on 7 May, which was its eighth successive round of making gains in local elections.

But across Essex, its share of seats across the county's 15 councils dropped from 102 to 92.

David King, the Lib Dem leader of Colchester City Council, said: "We need to let the party take the time to look to the future, and that's my appeal to Sir Ed. It's politely saying, time's up."

In response, a Lib Dem spokesperson said it was determined to "deliver change that's about building things up not burning them down".

A slim man in his sixties wearing a grey suit and waistcoat with a yellow tie smiling at the camera. He is in a sports hall, with tables and people behind him. — David King said the Lib Dems needed to have conversations about the leadership

The Lib Dems have been running Colchester council in coalition with Labour, but after both parties lost seats in the city, it is unclear who will lead the administration.

King said his response to the results was one of "dismay".

"[Sir Ed] provided a fantastic foundation. We had huge success in the last general election, but we've got to recognise the need for change now."

Mark Cory has also led Colchester council for the Lib Dems and he said the party needed to "build a vision, and a positive new leader could be the way forward".

"Ed Davey is a really good human being," Cory added. "But we do need to be a bit more dynamic."

Cory said the party had plenty of younger MPs and called on one of them to make "a vision for the country that is a positive vision that brings people together".

A man in his thirties in a suit and floral-patterned tie smiling at the camera. People are out of focus in the background in a sports hall. — Mark Cory said "a positive new leader" could be a way forward for the Liberal Democrats

Sir Ed had told BBC Essex during the campaign that he hoped to win seats in Brentwood, but instead the party walked away with one less seat in the town.

Stephen Robinson, the Lib Dem Chelmsford City Council leader, did not call for a change of leader, but said: "I think there needs to be a clearer message for areas outside of the west-of-London heartland.

"It's tough. In Chelmsford we did quite well. In the rest of Essex, we haven't done that well."

Robinson said Reform UK and the Green Party "have energetic leaders" who managed to increase their vote on 7 May without doing as much work on the ground.

Potholes and change: Why Essex voted for Reform

The Lib Dem party spokesperson said: "It is always hard when we lose hard-working councillors.

"Our brilliant teams across the country knocked on over three-and-a-half million doors this year."

They also claimed Sir Ed was "the most popular party leader in the country".

He was the most favoured party leader based on a survey, conducted in November, of 1,173 people who were all deemed to be "progressive" on the centre and centre-left of politics.

However, based on a YouGov poll of 2,134 people carried out in March, 24% had a favourable opinion of Sir Ed, compared with 27% who had a favourable opinion of both Kemi Badenoch and Farage.

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