The 2018 Wirral Metropolitan Borough Council election took place on 3 May 2018 to elect members of Wirral Metropolitan Borough Council in England.[5] This election was held on the same day as other local elections.
After the election, the composition of the council was:
There were in total 96 candidates (down 7 from 2016).[7] As per 2016, both Labour and The Conservative Party contested all 23 seats up for election. The Green Party also stood 23 (up 2), the Liberal Democrats, 22 (up 3) and TUSC, 3 (down 4). UKIP stood 1 candidate (down 8) with 1 Independent also standing.[8]
Wirral Labour's key priorities were to protect services; work with the police and social services to clamp down on anti-social behaviour and to work with the Metro Mayor to access funds to improve roads and highways.[10]
Wirral Labour received criticism by its own LCF (Local Campaign Forum) for only having one target seat, the Green held ward of Birkenhead and Tranmere.[11] Their campaign in Birkenhead included "Super Saturdays", personal attacks against the Green candidate Pat Cleary and suspected Green voting Labour members put on a list and threatened with suspension.[11] The Greens held the seat with an increased vote share.[12] Other targets were later added.
Conservative Party
The Wirral Conservative's key priorities were to cut spending on consultants and senior directors; abolish country park and coastal area parking charges; scrap the Wirral View newspaper and use the money to reinstate school crossing patrols; scrap plans for food waste bins and instead do more to reduce packaging and plastic waste; ban lending to other councils and scrap plans to build on the Green belt.[13][14]
Liberal Democrats
The Wirral Liberal Democrat's key priorities were to focus on getting basic services right; secure grants from the government that will recognise Wirral's needs; give local people a greater say, particularly over the Wirral Growth Company; "leave nobody out", particularly in the example of health and social services; make sure money from the sale of council assets is put back into the community; better maintain the road network with more 20 mph zones to improve safety and to scrap the Wirral View.[14]
Green Party
The Wirral Green Party's key priorities were to clamp down on waste and invest more in "key public services"; scrap the Wirral View newspaper and invest savings made in improving the environment; freeze executive pay and introduce measures to address the "obscene pay gap" between the lowest and highest paid council staff; prioritise key brownfield sites for regeneration and housing to end the threat to Wirral's Green belt; transform democratic structures to secure "a more inclusive and transparent council in contrast to the rigid closed shop operated by the Labour Party" and to prioritise investment in active travel with pedestrians, cyclists and cleaner air.[14]
Other parties
The sole UKIP candidate, Paula Walters, was urged to withdraw her nomination by The Labour Party due to a series of "hate-filled" tweets from an account under her name that compared migrants to terrorists.[15]
On 20 July, Conservative candidate Des Drury sent a printed letter to nearly 1,200 residents about a planning application being approved for the ex-Bromborough Secondary School site that borders the south of the ward.[86][87] The letter mentions a "More than 1,000" signature strong petition opposing the application.[88] The lead petitioner, who spoke in front of the planning committee when the application was considered on 19 July, was future Labour candidate Jo Bird.[87] This was despite the fact that all 7 Labour councillors on the committee (a majority on the committee as a whole) voted to approve the application.[88]
Upton by-election 2018
Cllr Matthew Patrick, first elected in 2013, announced his resignation on 21 September 2018.[89] He formally resigned on 7 October 2018 with a casual vacancy announced the following day.[90][91]
^"Wirral council Labour group leader Steve Foulkes steps down". BBC News. 29 March 2012. Retrieved 4 July 2018.
^Marles, Leigh (8 May 2017). "Wirral Council Conservative group has a new leader - Jeff Green ousted after 15-year reign". Wirral Globe. Retrieved 4 July 2018.
^Cureton, Stephanie (16 May 2013). "New leader for Wirral Liberal Democrats". Wirral Globe. Retrieved 4 July 2018.
^Murphy, Liam (23 May 2014). "Green party enjoy shock Birkenhead success in Wirral elections". Liverpool Echo. Retrieved 4 July 2018.
^ abcdef"Election Results by Party, Local election - Thursday, 3rd May 2018". Wirral Metropolitan Borough Council. 3 May 2018. Retrieved 15 January 2019.
^"Wirral Metropolitan Borough Council Election 2018 Results". BBC News. 4 May 2018. Retrieved 9 January 2018.
^Houghton, Tom (9 April 2018). "Here are the Wirral Council candidates you can vote for in May's local election". Wirral Globe. Retrieved 15 January 2019.
^Manning, Craig (10 April 2018). "Wirral Council leader Phil Davies launches local election campaign". Wirral Globe. Retrieved 15 January 2019.
^"Labour is last line of defence against savage Tory cuts". Wirral Labour Group (Press release). 10 April 2018. Retrieved 15 January 2019.
^ abJustice, Julian (17 May 2018). "Pip's Cabinet Kerfuffle". Wirral Leaks. Retrieved 15 January 2019.
^ abcHoughton, Tom (24 April 2018). "What Wirral's main political parties say they will do if they win power in May local elections". Liverpool Echo. Retrieved 15 January 2019.
^Houghton, Tom (22 April 2018). "UKIP council hopeful's 'hate-filled' tweets compared migrants to terrorists". Liverpool Echo. Retrieved 15 January 2019.
^Jones, Lauren (10 November 2017). "Tributes paid to 'selfless' Wirral Councillor Walter Smith who has passed away". Wirral Globe. Retrieved 15 January 2019.
^Hughes, Lorna (9 July 2018). "Why young Wirral councillor who took on "grey-haired old men" is stepping down". Liverpool Echo. Retrieved 15 January 2019.
^Robinson, Eric (10 July 2018). "Notice of casual vacancy in the office of councillor for the Bromborough ward". Wirral Metropolitan Borough Council. Archived from the original on 28 July 2018. Retrieved 12 July 2018.
^Robinson, Eric. "Election of Councillor - Notice of Election for the Bromborough ward". Wirral Metropolitan Borough Council. Archived from the original on 28 July 2018. Retrieved 20 July 2018.
^"New Ferry & Bromborough Labour Party on Twitter". Twitter. @LabourBromNF. 18 July 2018. Retrieved 23 July 2018.
^"Des Drury for Bromborough, New Ferry, Port Sunlight, Bromborough Pool and Spital". Wirral Conservatives. Retrieved 20 July 2018.
^"Bromborough By-Election: Vicky Downie the Lib Dem candidate". Wirral Lib Dems. 22 July 2018. Retrieved 24 July 2018.
^"Election results for Bromborough Local by-election - Thursday, 23rd August 2018". Wirral Metropolitan Borough Council. Retrieved 23 August 2018.
^"Residents dismayed after Planning Committee backs Morris Homes plan". Wirral Conservatives. 20 July 2018. Retrieved 23 July 2018.
^ abHoughton, Tom (20 July 2018). "Hundreds of homes to be built in Wirral despite major opposition". Liverpool Echo. Retrieved 23 July 2018.
^ ab"Update for Residents" (PDF). Wirral Conservatives. Retrieved 23 July 2018.
^Houghton, Tom (21 September 2018). "One of Wirral's most senior politicians has announced he is to stand down". Liverpool Echo. Retrieved 21 September 2018.
^Robinson, Eric (8 October 2018). "Notice of casual vacancy in the office of Councillor for the Upton ward". Wirral Council. Archived from the original on 29 October 2018. Retrieved 9 October 2018.
^Robinson, Eric. "Notice of election of a councillor for the Upton ward". Wirral Council. Archived from the original on 29 October 2018. Retrieved 20 October 2018.
^"Wirral West Labour on Twitter". Twitter. @WWLabour. Retrieved 14 October 2018.
^"Emma Sellman (Upton, Woodchurch, Overchurch and Arrowe Park)". Wirral Conservatives. Retrieved 13 October 2018.
^"Election results for Upton Local by-election - Thursday, 22nd November 2018". Wirral Metropolitan Borough Council. 22 November 2018. Retrieved 22 November 2018.
^"Wirral councillor quits party blaming hard left 'parasites'". Labour Uncut. 28 August 2018. Retrieved 28 December 2018.
^Houghton, Tom (25 October 2018). "Senior Labour politician quits party after 40 years citing 'absolute aggression' of 'hard-left clique'". Liverpool Echo. Retrieved 28 December 2018.
^Houghton, Tom (12 February 2019). "Yet ANOTHER top Labour politician quits party - blaming 'hard-left' takeover". Liverpool Echo. Retrieved 12 February 2019.
^Houghton, Tom (4 March 2019). "Labour councillor suspended after 'Jew process' joke". Liverpool Echo. Retrieved 4 March 2019.
^Houghton, Tom (15 March 2019). "Labour councillor who made 'Jew process' joke has suspension lifted". Liverpool Echo. Retrieved 15 March 2019.
^Houghton, Tom (18 March 2019). "Labour Councillor of more than 30 years latest to quit party and slam 'hard-left' takeover". Liverpool Echo. Retrieved 18 March 2019.
^Houghton, Tom (10 April 2019). "Wirral politician booted out of Labour after campaigning for rival party". Liverpool Echo. Retrieved 10 April 2019.
^Houghton, Tom (22 February 2019). "The UK's newest Independent Group has been created by fed-up politicians - right here on Merseyside". Liverpool Echo. Retrieved 22 February 2019.