Conservatives remain in power in Walsall

Walsall Council is to remain a Conservative led after the Council meeting last night. Instead of  being a minority Conservative administration it will be a Conservative/Lib Dem coalition. Under the Conservatives this has been a progressive council using the New Homes Bonus to promote growth and regeneration including bringing empty homes back into use.

The balance of power is pretty tight. Labour have more councillors than the Conservatives. The Conservative leader Cllr Mike Bird was elected last night by 29 to 28. The 24 Conservatives and five Lib Dems voting together against the 28 Labour councillors and three independents abstaining.

But this is a council where the Parliamentary seats include a couple of Labour MPs in marginal seats with boundary changes that will make it harder for them to win next time. Across the rest of Black Country we see Labour sweeping to power easily in Dudley, Wolverhampton and Birmingham. They would have expected to have gained overall control of Walsall but still finds themselves in opposition.

West Midlands Conservatives might care to look at how the Walsall Conservatives managed to hold back the Labour tide.