TWENTY councillors in a Nottinghamshire borough have resigned from Labour in protest over the party’s leadership under Sir Keir Starmer.
Leader of Broxtowe Borough Council, Cllr Milan Radulovic, announced on Thursday (January 2) his resignation from the Labour Party alongside 19 other councillors.
They will now form an independent group, and are planning to run the council as a minority administration, with Labour having now lost control of the authority.
Speaking to media in Beeston, Cllr Radulovic, who has been a Labour Party member for 43 years, said the decision had been the result of a “cumulation of a number of years of mistreatment by the regional and national party”.
He said the party had blocked their preferred candidate, Greg Marshall, for parliamentary selection before the 2024 General Election, while he claimed 10 members had more recently been blocked for standing for Labour in Nottinghamshire County Council’s upcoming election, because they had questioned the Government’s winter fuel policy.
Cllr Marshall, deputy leader of the council, is one of the 20 councillors to have quit.
Radulovic, who has served as leader of the borough council for 22 years, said: “The hope over the previous 14 years of austerity and mismanagement of this country’s finances and resources was that there was an opportunity for a new beginning.
“The word was change. What we didn’t realise was what they meant was change for the worse. What we have seen since July is the abandonment of the working classes.”
A local Labour spokeswoman said the announcement was “incredibly disappointing” given that they were elected on a Labour ticket just over 18 months ago.
“These defections have no effect on the commitment of the remaining Labour Councillors in serving our residents,” the spokeswoman said.
“We, together with our Labour colleagues including MPs Juliet Campbell (Broxtowe) and Alex Norris (Nottingham North), will continue to work to make Broxtowe a healthier, greener, safer and more prosperous place for everyone as change begins under this Labour government.”
Speaking to the Local Democracy Reporting Service after the announcement, Cllr Radulovic said: “You look at failing to lift the two-child benefit cap, you look at the withdrawal of winter fuel allowance, you look at the betrayal of the WASPI women, they are all issues that effect people in greatest need.
“That cannot be right. We live in a democracy. Individual people and communities have the right to representation, not to be dictated to be a centralist establishment intent on protecting the elite, while we suffer the cuts.
“I effectively refer to him as Keir and his starmtroopers.”
The announcement was made at the Quadrant in Beeston, with ‘Broxtowe Independents’ branding used by the new group as they forge a new identity.
The name has caused outrage among another group of Broxtowe independent councillors.
Councillors Richard MacRae, Donna MacRae, Steve Carr, Barbara Carr and Elizabeth Williamson launched their ‘Broxtowe Independent Group’ at the end of December.
Cllr MacRae, who represents Stapleford, said they have been left angered and deeply upset following the announcement that 20 former members of the Broxtowe Labour Party have left their party and adopted the Broxtowe Independents name.
“The decision by this newly formed group of former Labour Party members to label themselves ‘Broxtowe Independents’ is not only misleading but undermines the integrity and clarity of political representation in our area,” he said.
“It appears to be an attempt to capitalise on our well-established reputation, creating ambiguity among voters who may struggle to distinguish between our organisation and this new, unrelated entity.
“We are currently working with the Electoral Commission to secure the official registration of our name, Broxtowe Independent Group, to protect it from misuse and to ensure that our identity remains distinct.”
Cllr Teresa Cullen, another of the 20 former Labour members to have quit the party, said their new party’s name had not been finalised.
The decision by the 20 councillors now means Labour has also lost its position as the official opposition on Nottinghamshire County Council.
This title now belongs to the Nottinghamshire County Independent Group.
Cllr Jason Zadrozny, the leader of Ashfield Independents-run Ashfield District Council and the Nottinghamshire County Independent Group, described it as a “pivotal” moment.
“Only Independents can be trusted to stand up for residents, hold failing parties to account, and deliver the future our communities deserve,” he added.
(Local Democracy Reporting Service)
