1998 Camden London Borough Council election

1998 Camden London Borough Council election

←  1994 7 May 1998 (1998-05-07) 2002  →
All 59 seats up for election to Camden London Borough Council 30 seats needed for a majority
Registered	135,131 [1]
Turnout	45,168, 33.43% ( 8.85) [1]
First party Second party   Leader Richard Arthur Judith Barnes Party Labour Conservative Leader since 1993 1990 Leader's seat Highgate Belsize [n 1] Last election 47 seats, 52.00% 7 seats, 23.76% Seats before 46 Seats won 43 10 Seat change 4 3 Popular vote 44,346 10,835 Percentage 46.74% 25.09% Swing 5.26 1.33   Third party Fourth party   Leader Felicity M.P. Rea John Macdonald Party Liberal Democrats Independent Labour Leader since 1988 Unknown Leader's seat Fortune Green Swiss Cottage (lost) Last election 5 seats, 18.37% New Seats before 5 1 Seats won 6 0 Seat change 1 Popular vote 22,247 600 Percentage 23.45% 0.63% Swing 5.08 New
Map of the results of the 1998 election to Camden London Borough Council. Labour (red) won every councillor in the south and east of the borough, while Conservatives (blue) and Liberal Democrats (yellow) won most councillors in Hampstead.
Council control after election before election Labour Council Control after election Labour

The 1998 Camden Borough Council election took place on 7 May 1998 to elect members of Camden London Borough Council in London, England. The whole council was up for election and the Labour Party stayed in overall control of the council. ^[2]

Background

In the four years before this election there were two by-elections to replace councillors who resigned, one in Adelaide and one in Bloomsbury. ^[3] These by-elections didn't result in seats changing parties however.

In addition to this there was one allegiance change from Labour to Independent Labour in the Swiss Cottage ward which meant the composition of the council just before the election was as follows: ^[4]

↓

46	1	5	7
Labour	Ind. Labour	Lib Dem	Con

Campaign

Issues in the election included a recent 10% council tax rise which was the highest in London, service improvements, claims that a partnership with the police had cut crime and a strike in local libraries. ^[5]

Election result

Overall turnout in the election was 33.4%. ^[6] At the same as the election Camden saw 81.18% vote in favour of the 1998 Greater London Authority referendum and 18.82% against, on a 32.84% turnout. ^[7]

1998 Camden London Borough Council election results ^{[8] [9]}

Party		Seats	Gains	Losses	Net gain/loss	Seats %	Votes %	Votes	+/−
	Labour	43	1	5	4	72.88	46.74	44,346	5.26
	Conservative	10	1	4	3	16.95	25.09	23,802	1.33
	Liberal Democrats	6	1	0	1	10.17	23.45	22,247	5.08
	Green	0	0	0		0.00	3.27	3,098	0.21
	Independent	0	0	0		0.00	0.77	729	New
	Independent Labour	0	0	0		0.00	0.63	600	New
	Socialist (GB)	0	0	0		0.00	0.06	58	New
Total		59						94,839

The council composition after the election was as follows:

↓

43	6	10
Labour	Lib Dem	Con

Ward results

(*) - Indicates an incumbent candidate

(†) - Indicates an incumbent candidate standing in a different ward

Adelaide

Adelaide (3) ^{[8] [9] [6]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Julian J. Tobin*	960	44.89	5.02
	Conservative	Andrew Marshall	929
	Conservative	Piers Wauchope	868
	Labour	Sadashivrao N. Deshmukh† [n 2]	796	37.61	2.77
	Labour	Harriet E.A. Garland† [n 3]	768
	Labour	Deborah H. Sacks† [n 4]	746
	Liberal Democrats	Mark I. Finney	384	17.50	5.20
	Liberal Democrats	Pamela Collis	383
	Liberal Democrats	Madhvi Natt	308
Registered electors			5,794		386
Turnout			2,242	38.70	5.72
Rejected ballots			31	1.38	1.21
	Conservative gain from Labour
	Conservative hold
	Conservative gain from Labour

Belsize

Belsize (3) ^{[8] [9] [6]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Ewan K. Cameron	760	33.20	2.07
	Conservative	Huntly G. Spence	731
	Labour	Aileen Hammond	711
	Conservative	Jonathan M. Bucknell	705	30.01	3.44
	Labour	David Taggart	650
	Labour	Jake T. Sumner	624
	Liberal Democrats	Pauline E. Marriott	587	23.64	2.95
	Liberal Democrats	Dudley R.A. Miles	522
	Liberal Democrats	Ronald E. Watts	455
	Green	Phyllis E. Eyres	290	13.15	2.56
Registered electors			6,099		600
Turnout			2,148	35.22	8.55
Rejected ballots			31	1.44	1.02
	Conservative hold
	Conservative gain from Labour
	Labour gain from Conservative

Bloomsbury

Bloomsbury (3) ^{[8] [9] [6]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Patricia Callaghan* [n 5]	1,050	41.79	9.17
	Labour	Nirmal C. Roy*	908
	Labour	Jake Turnbull	777
	Conservative	Barbara Douglass	626	25.00	0.81
	Conservative	Mark D.I. Haley	538
	Conservative	Ian Nottingham	472
	Liberal Democrats	John R.T. Ward	468	20.37	1.95
	Liberal Democrats	Philip C.H. Moser	455
	Liberal Democrats	Gerald S. Wall	410
	Green	Nicki Kortvelyessy	280	12.84	New
Registered electors			8,041		733
Turnout			2,203	27.40	5.65
Rejected ballots			27	1.23	1.02
	Labour hold
	Labour hold
	Labour hold

Brunswick

Brunswick (2) ^{[8] [9] [6]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Brian C.M. Weekes*	653	38.27	14.90
	Labour	Edward F. Cousins	601
	Conservative	Kenneth J. Avery	443	24.99	2.96
	Conservative	Philip F. Norman	376
	Liberal Democrats	Penelope F. Jones	286	17.45	1.43
	Green	Robert E. Whitley	258	15.75	New
	Socialist (GB)	Stanley R. Parker	58	3.54	New
Registered electors			4,643		561
Turnout			1,450	31.23	7.06
Rejected ballots			13	0.90	0.58
	Labour hold
	Labour hold

Camden

Camden (2) ^{[8] [9] [6]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Patricia Nightingale*	929	54.87	6.13
	Labour	Dermot R. Greene*	844
	Liberal Democrats	Helena Djurkovic	323	18.07	1.95
	Liberal Democrats	Simieon E. Litman	261
	Green	Douglas S. Earl	236	14.61	New
	Conservative	Sylvia M.C. Currie	213	12.44	2.20
	Conservative	Iris Coney	189
Registered electors			5,616		463
Turnout			1,671	29.75	11.29
Rejected ballots			26	1.56	1.09
	Labour hold
	Labour hold

Castlehaven

Castlehaven (2) ^{[8] [9] [6]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Jane E. Roberts*	677	51.15	7.49
	Labour	Deirdre Krymer† [n 6]	569
	Green	Kate Gordon	208	17.08	3.35
	Liberal Democrats	Natasha Dunn	204	13.63	2.20
	Conservative	Emma Chapman	158	12.23	0.43
	Conservative	Joan Stally	140
	Liberal Democrats	Darren Ziff	128
	Independent	Jane Owen	72	5.91	New
Registered electors			4,120		276
Turnout			1,227	29.78	12.18
Rejected ballots			15	1.22	0.85
	Labour hold
	Labour hold

Caversham

Caversham (2) ^{[8] [9] [6]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Bernard Kissen*	902	60.55	3.60
	Labour	Anne G.J. Swain*	877
	Liberal Democrats	Soren K. Agerholm	378	24.92	9.47
	Liberal Democrats	Brian Stone	354
	Conservative	Anthony Blackburn	247	14.53	0.07
	Conservative	Barbara R. Wallis	180
Registered electors			5,280		404
Turnout			1,626	30.80	9.13
Rejected ballots			34	2.09	1.73
	Labour hold
	Labour hold

Chalk Farm

Chalk Farm (2) ^{[8] [9] [6]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	William G. Budd*	615	43.97	0.94
	Labour	John R. White† [n 7]	591
	Liberal Democrats	Charles N.H. Marquand	419	29.68	15.84
	Liberal Democrats	Rupert B. Redesdale	395
	Conservative	William L. Mitchell	385	26.36	6.00
	Conservative	David R. Walters	338
Registered electors			4,094		432
Turnout			1,475	36.03	11.38
Rejected ballots			19	1.29	1.12
	Labour hold
	Labour hold

Fitzjohns

Fitzjohns (2) ^{[8] [9] [6]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Martin J. Davies	590	43.54	6.26
	Conservative	Karl A. Mennear	536
	Labour	Peter T.L. Dann	393	30.28	2.57
	Labour	Deborah A. Townsend	390
	Liberal Democrats	Martin P.G. Wright	245	18.76	2.39
	Liberal Democrats	Ricarda A.J. O'Driscoll	240
	Green	Dorothy H. Forsyth	96	7.42	1.06
Registered electors			3,840		602
Turnout			1,298	33.80	6.16
Rejected ballots			9	0.69	0.46
	Conservative hold
	Conservative hold

Fortune Green

Fortune Green (2) ^{[8] [9] [6]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal Democrats	Felicity M.P. Rea*	975	60.03	6.53
	Liberal Democrats	Jane Schopflin*	829
	Labour	Michael F.J. Broughton	375	24.86	2.40
	Labour	Roy C. Lockett	372
	Conservative	Carrie H. Ruxton	228	15.11	0.55
	Conservative	Michael Prichett	226
Registered electors			4,096		629
Turnout			1,609	39.28	12.09
Rejected ballots			19	1.18	0.96
	Liberal Democrats hold
	Liberal Democrats hold

Frognal

Frognal (2) ^{[8] [9] [6]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Pamela J. Chesters*	687	48.90	9.40
	Conservative	Dawn A. Somper*	640
	Labour	Anne Robertson	311	21.74	0.15
	Labour	Helen C. Seaford	279
	Liberal Democrats	Barbara E. How	272	19.34	2.78
	Liberal Democrats	Nigel I. Barnes	253
	Green	Charles H. Harris	136	10.02	2.28
Registered electors			4,380		462
Turnout			1,346	30.73	10.06
Rejected ballots			11	0.82	0.63
	Conservative hold
	Conservative hold

Gospel Oak

Gospel Oak (2) ^{[8] [9] [6]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	John A.D. Mills*	760	52.76	3.17
	Labour	Judith E. Pattison† [n 8]	719
	Liberal Democrats	Margaret A. Jackson-Roberts	336	22.01	6.13
	Liberal Democrats	Jeffrey R. Poulter	281
	Conservative	Marian Harrison	221	14.31	2.79
	Conservative	Henry Whittaker	180
	Green	Debra J. Green	153	10.92	0.17
Registered electors			4,464		167
Turnout			1,499	33.58	6.47
Rejected ballots			14	0.93	0.70
	Labour hold
	Labour hold

Grafton

Grafton (2) ^{[8] [9] [6]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Roy E. Shaw*	705	55.67	16.43
	Labour	John K. Dickie† [n 9]	660
	Liberal Democrats	Margaret A. Finer	221	16.80	2.50
	Liberal Democrats	Anne B. Elliott	191
	Conservative	Doreen F. Bartlett	187	13.66	0.06
	Green	Sheila M. Oakes	170	13.87	New
	Conservative	Belinda Shapps	148
Registered electors			4,422		222
Turnout			1,287	29.10	10.11
Rejected ballots			26	2.02	1.35
	Labour hold
	Labour hold

Hampstead Town

Hampstead Town (2) ^{[8] [9] [6]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal Democrats	Margaret F. Little*	1,028	60.21	7.79
	Liberal Democrats	Sidney Malin	912
	Conservative	Roderick G.A. Anderson	368	22.41	2.50
	Conservative	Michael C. Bottom	354
	Labour	Mark Leonard	301	17.38	0.15
	Labour	Rudolph Champagne	259
Registered electors			3,985		293
Turnout			1,625	40.78	10.24
Rejected ballots			12	0.74	0.63
	Liberal Democrats hold
	Liberal Democrats hold

Highgate

Highgate (3) ^{[8] [9] [6]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Maggie Cosin*	1,275	38.93	8.38
	Labour	Richard A. Arthur*	1,252
	Labour	John Thane† [n 10]	1,141
	Conservative	Judith V. Barnes† [n 11]	930	27.85	5.46
	Conservative	Roger J. Freeman	869
	Conservative	Cynthia M. Silk	825
	Liberal Democrats	Heather Macauley	666	18.22	4.64
	Liberal Democrats	Richard J. Waddington	594
	Green	Paul T.B. Gannon	471	15.00	1.72
	Liberal Democrats	Peter R.B. Mair	457
Registered electors			7,427		379
Turnout			3,031	40.81	9.47
Rejected ballots			24	0.79	0.62
	Labour hold
	Labour hold
	Labour hold

Holborn

Holborn (2) ^{[8] [9] [6]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Julian G.H. Fulbrook*	948	62.51	9.21
	Labour	Brian Woodrow*	838
	Conservative	William G. Glossop	328	19.00	4.61
	Liberal Democrats	Pamela M. Lutgen	264	18.49	8.15
	Liberal Democrats	Barbara D.E. Turner	264
	Conservative	Shailesh Vara	215
Registered electors			4,807		326
Turnout			1,629	33.89	10.61
Rejected ballots			31	1.90	1.45
	Labour hold
	Labour hold

Kilburn

Kilburn (3) ^{[8] [9] [6]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Heather M. Johnson*	1,181	46.11	5.33
	Labour	Charles W. Hedges*	1,007
	Labour	Timothy J. Walker*	957
	Conservative	Robert E. Graham	435	17.83	5.44
	Conservative	Jane Stanton-Humphreys	395
	Conservative	Jonathan Morgan	386
	Green	Helen Mayer	362	15.92	5.62
	Independent	Lawrence S. Morris	267	11.75	New
	Liberal Democrats	David R. Glover	233	8.39	2.49
	Liberal Democrats	Jeremy R. Allen	206
	Liberal Democrats	Erich Wagner	133
Registered electors			7,606		998
Turnout			2,119	27.86	11.46
Rejected ballots			30	1.42	1.27
	Labour hold
	Labour hold
	Labour hold

King's Cross

King's Cross (2) ^{[8] [9] [6]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Barbara L. Hughes	833	62.68	2.05
	Labour	Nicholas D.J. Smith	766
	Conservative	James E.B. Atkin	269	18.82	0.50
	Liberal Democrats	Rosemary Gandy	240	18.50	1.54
	Liberal Democrats	Eleanor V. Freedman	232
	Conservative	Robert A. Ricketts	211
Registered electors			5,057		281
Turnout			1,447	28.61	7.19
Rejected ballots			28	1.94	1.30
	Labour hold
	Labour hold

Priory

Priory (2) ^{[8] [9] [6]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	John A. Rolfe	823	64.89	1.20
	Labour	Philip J. Turner*	809
	Conservative	Martyn B. Fisher	276	20.64	0.06
	Conservative	Rose Irwin	243
	Liberal Democrats	Rex C. Warner	226	14.47	1.26
	Liberal Democrats	Joan M. Hervey	138
Registered electors			4,607		254
Turnout			1,468	31.86	11.01
Rejected ballots			21	1.43	1.22
	Labour hold
	Labour hold

Regent's Park

Regent's Park (3) ^{[8] [9] [6]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	James Turner*	1,125	48.30	0.31
	Labour	Barbara Ward	983
	Labour	Richard J. Olszewski*	947
	Conservative	Paul S. Gray	540	22.45	2.27
	Conservative	Anthony Kemp	468
	Conservative	Jeremy S. Bradshaw	412
	Liberal Democrats	Ardon J. Lyon	354	15.64	3.65
	Liberal Democrats	David A. Berry	350
	Independent	Alan Patterson	287	13.61	New
	Liberal Democrats	Benjamin Newbrook	285
Registered electors			6,863		784
Turnout			2,245	32.71	11.28
Rejected ballots			46	2.05	1.98
	Labour hold
	Labour hold
	Labour hold

St John's

St John's (2) ^{[8] [9] [6]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Penelope F. Abraham*	990	64.43	0.96
	Labour	David P.L. Horan† [n 12]	977
	Liberal Democrats	Diana M. Brown	406	24.80	10.03
	Liberal Democrats	Stephen L. Molesworth	351
	Conservative	Michael R. Farrer	183	10.78	0.92
	Conservative	Roland G.W. Walker	146
Registered electors			4,710		391
Turnout			1,652	35.07	5.66
Rejected ballots			28	1.69	1.12
	Labour hold
	Labour hold

St Pancras

St Pancras (2) ^{[8] [9] [6]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Gloria Lazenby*	686	60.47	3.56
	Labour	Roger L. Robinson	576
	Liberal Democrats	Fiona A. Palmer	254	23.48	8.91
	Liberal Democrats	Ian R. Myers	236
	Conservative	Laura Hoskins	173	16.05	4.70
	Conservative	Blanche Mundlak	162
Registered electors			3,803		318
Turnout			1,259	33.11	5.28
Rejected ballots			19	1.51	1.44
	Labour hold
	Labour hold

Somers Town

Somers Town (2) ^{[8] [9] [6]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Sybil S. Shine*	815	57.60	4.95
	Labour	Ernest P. James† [n 13]	743
	Conservative	David R. Harris	226	14.38	3.26
	Liberal Democrats	Caroline Ford	225	16.64	4.88
	Conservative	Joseph P. Sleigh	163
	Green	Andrew M. Spring	154	11.39	New
Registered electors			4,874		109
Turnout			1,375	28.21	10.78
Rejected ballots			23	1.67	1.19
	Labour hold
	Labour hold

South End

South End (2) ^{[8] [9] [6]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Gerry Harrison*	999	54.29	7.06
	Labour	Janet M. Guthrie	919
	Conservative	Jonathan F. Pardoe	490	26.07	2.88
	Conservative	Dominic J. Schofield	431
	Liberal Democrats	Peter J. Buonacorsi-How	348	19.64	6.48
	Liberal Democrats	Andrew G. Wade	346
Registered electors			4,972		650
Turnout			1,893	38.07	7.74
Rejected ballots			20	1.06	0.96
	Labour hold
	Labour hold

Swiss Cottage

Swiss Cottage (3) ^{[8] [9] [6]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Mary Ryan	887	28.58	12.32
	Labour	Robert E. Hall† [n 14]	834
	Conservative	Stephen J. Hocking	756	26.35	8.07
	Conservative	Honora Morrissey	754
	Conservative	Peter J. Horne	732
	Labour	Bernard H. Moss	710
	Independent Labour	John Macdonald* [n 15]	600	21.16	New
	Liberal Democrats	Nicholas H.F. Collins	439	13.89	1.79
	Liberal Democrats	Sally P. Twite	378
	Liberal Democrats	Herbert J. Newbrook	365
	Green	Catherine M. Gregory	284	10.02	1.02
Registered electors			6,871		827
Turnout			2,433	35.41	6.62
Rejected ballots			33	1.36	1.20
	Labour hold
	Labour hold
	Conservative gain from Labour

West End

West End (2) ^{[8] [9] [6]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal Democrats	Keith Moffitt*	972	49.21	10.29
	Liberal Democrats	Heather Thompson	811
	Labour	David J. Lines*	705	37.18	5.54
	Labour	Geoffrey R. Berridge	642
	Conservative	Neil Bourhill	156	7.92	3.62
	Conservative	Elaine B. Mackover	131
	Independent	Farshtchi M. Ahavan	62	3.42	New
	Independent	Antoine J. Clarke	41	2.26	New
Registered electors			4,660		524
Turnout			1,911	41.01	8.36
Rejected ballots			14	0.73	0.58
	Liberal Democrats gain from Labour
	Liberal Democrats hold

Notes

1. Although he represented Belsize ward, in this election he stood for the Highgate ward and lost
2. Deshmukh was a sitting councillor representing the South End ward
3. Garland was a sitting councillor representing the Chalk Farm ward
4. Sacks was a sitting councillor representing the Highgate ward
5. Callaghan was elected in a by-election triggered by the resignation of Cllr. Shelley Burke in 1995 ^[3]
6. Krymer was a sitting councillor representing the Bloomsbury ward
7. White was a sitting councillor representing the King's Cross ward
8. Pattison was a sitting councillor representing the Belsize ward
9. Dickie was a sitting councillor representing the Hampstead Town ward. He was originally elected as Liberal Democrat but in this election has switched to the Labour Party
10. Thane was a sitting councillor representing the St John's ward
11. Barnes was a sitting councillor representing the Belsize ward
12. Horan was a sitting councillor representing the Regent's Park ward
13. James was a sitting councillor representing the Brunswick ward
14. Hall was a sitting councillor representing the Gospel Oak ward
15. Macdonald was originally elected as a Labour Party councillor but at some point left the party and became a Independent Labour councillor

References

1. Minors, Michael; Grenham, Dennis. "London Borough Council Elections - 7 May 1998 - including the Greater London Authority referendum results - Ward voting statistics" (PDF). London Datastore. London Research Centre. p. 192. Retrieved 21 July 2025.
2. "Local Elections results". The Times . 9 May 1998. p. 46.
3. Minors, Michael; Grenham, Dennis. "London Borough Council Elections - 7 May 1998 - including the Greater London Authority referendum results - By-elections" (PDF). London Datastore. London Research Centre. p. 34. Retrieved 21 July 2025.
4. Minors, Michael; Grenham, Dennis. "London Borough Council Elections - 7 May 1998 - including the Greater London Authority referendum results - Changes 1994-1998" (PDF). London Datastore. London Research Centre. p. 29. Retrieved 21 July 2025.
5. "Councils of war: the 12 key town halls they're fighting for". Evening Standard . London. 6 May 1998. p. 19.
6. "Local Election Results 7th May 1998". Camden Council. Archived from the original on 11 June 2011. Retrieved 21 May 2010.
7. "Policy and politics: Local elections: How London voted for a mayor". The Guardian . 9 May 1998. p. 16.
8. Minors, Michael; Grenham, Dennis. "London Borough Council Elections - 7 May 1998 - including the Greater London Authority referendum results" (PDF). London Datastore. London Research Centre. pp. 31–34, 192–193. Retrieved 15 July 2025.
9. Minors, Michael; Grenham, Dennis. "London Borough of Camden Election Results 1964-2010" (PDF). London Datastore. London Research Centre. pp. 11–12. Retrieved 15 July 2025.