Tameside councillor unanimously re-elected as Conservative area leader despite Labour's domination in local elections

By Ben Burrows

Tameside councillor John Bell has been unanimously re-elected as leader of the Conservative party in the area.

Rumours were abound that Tameside could have a new Conservative leader after the Tories poor showing in the local elections a fortnight ago.

Labour tightened their grip on the borough holding 15 seats as well as gaining control of Ashton Hurst, Stalybridge North and Hyde Werneth from the Conservatives.

Speaking on the night Cllr Bell said: “Sadly, it looks like a disappointing night for us.

“It looks like a protest vote from UKIP, who have done no work and put out no literature, has hurt us.”

Labour have reacted to the news on Twitter declaring: “It’s a mistake they’ve made and we look forward to the losses made again under his watch.”

Speaking prior to the results on the night Cllr Bell said: “It will be a blow if we lose one of our heartlands of Stalybridge South or Hyde Werneth.”

Indeed, the most damaging knock was the loss of Hyde Werneth to Labour – a seat they have held for 16 years.

Labour’s Raja Miah struck a significant blow for his party beating incumbent Tory Cllr Floyd Paterson by 1923 votes to 1470.

The results in Tameside were reflected nationwide with both the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats suffering significant losses all over the country.

Labour finished the night with 584 more councillors with the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats losing 328 and 190 respectively.

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