2008 Halton Borough Council election

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The 2008 Halton Borough Council election took place on 1 May 2008 to elect members of Halton Unitary Council in Cheshire, England. One third of the council was up for election and the Labour Party stayed in overall control of the council. [1]

Contents

After the election, the composition of the council was:

Campaign

20 seats were contested in the election with Labour defending 12, the Liberal Democrats 6 and the Conservatives 2. [3] Among these seats were those of the Labour leader of the council, Tony McDermott, and the Liberal Democrat group leader, Linda Redhead. [3] There were 63 candidates including 20 from Labour, 19 each from the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats, 4 from the Green Party and 1 Citizens Party of Halton candidate. [4] Labour were expected to remain in control of the council, but both Liberal Democrats and Conservatives were hoping to make gains, with the Liberal Democrats targeting Runcorn and the wards of Castlefields and Halton Brook. [3]

A big issue in the election was a plan for an Ineos Chlor heat and power plant in the area with both the Liberal Democrats and Conservatives raising concerns from residents. [3] Other issues included the Mersey Gateway project and the government Building Schools for the Future programme for building new schools. [3] Labour were happy to defend their record in control of the council, but the Conservatives attacked Council Tax rises over the previous decade and the Liberal Democrats said that Runcorn had been neglected in favour of Widnes. [3]

Results

The results saw Labour remain in control of the council as they had been since it became a unitary authority in 1998. [5] Labour held all 12 seats they had been defending, including the leader of the council, Tony McDermott, who was comfortably re-elected in Broadheath ward. [5] He described the results as being a "real vote of confidence in the party". [5]

However, in Halton Brook ward the Labour councillor Stef Nelson only held his seat after a tie which required the drawing of lots. [6] Both Nelson and the Liberal Democrat candidate, Louise Whitley, won 551 votes after 7 recounts, requiring the Returning Officer to draw a lot to decide the result, with Nelson successful and thus being declared to have won the election by 1 vote. [6]

The only seat to change hands was Daresbury, where the Conservative Marjorie Bradshaw gained from the Liberal Democrats, in a ward which her husband had won in the 2007 election. [7] Elsewhere the Green Party significantly reduced the Labour majority in Halton View ward. [7] Overall turnout in the election was slightly down at 26.84%. [8]

Halton local election result 2008 [8]
PartySeatsGainsLossesNet gain/lossSeats %Votes %Votes+/−
  Labour 1200060.038.19,108-3.1
  Liberal Democrats 501-125.030.67,327-0.2
  Conservative 310+115.027.46,557+4.8
  Green 00000.03.5847+0.2
 Citizens Party of Halton00000.00.4970.0

Ward results

Appleton [8]
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Labour Eddie Jones73370.3+9.0
Conservative Thomas Campbell31029.7+10.8
Majority 42340.6−1.8
Turnout 1,04322.2−1.5
Labour hold Swing
Beechwood [8]
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Liberal Democrats Linda Redhead63355.9−15.0
Conservative David Walker36131.9+19.7
Labour Peter Harding13912.3−4.6
Majority 27224.0−30.0
Turnout 1,13336.2+2.3
Liberal Democrats hold Swing
Birchfield [8]
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Conservative Peter Browne81257.9−3.9
Labour Jo Gleave39828.4−9.8
Liberal Democrats Jayne Worrall19313.8+13.8
Majority 41429.5+5.9
Turnout 1,40329.2−0.6
Conservative hold Swing
Broadheath [8]
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Labour Tony McDermott55758.8−5.8
Conservative Phillip Harper22924.2+5.1
Liberal Democrats Geoff Brown16117.0+0.6
Majority 32834.6−10.9
Turnout 94719.7−5.0
Labour hold Swing
Castlefields [8]
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Labour Harry Howard55548.8+3.0
Liberal Democrats Simon Charlesworth46140.5−5.6
Conservative Terence McDermott12210.7+2.6
Majority 948.3
Turnout 1,13825.3−1.1
Labour hold Swing
Daresbury [8]
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Conservative Marjorie Bradshaw62448.4+0.1
Liberal Democrats Chris Inch52840.9+5.6
Labour Amanda Stockton13810.7−5.7
Majority 967.4−5.6
Turnout 1,29040.5+3.0
Conservative gain from Liberal Democrats Swing
Ditton [8]
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Labour Marie Wright65043.6−5.8
Conservative Stephan Pfaffenzeller49533.2+2.6
Liberal Democrats Ann Curzon34623.2+3.2
Majority 15510.4−8.4
Turnout 1,49128.4−1.3
Labour hold Swing
Farnworth [8]
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Conservative Phillip Balmer99258.8+5.7
Labour Robert Beck39123.2−3.1
Liberal Democrats Ian Hare18511.0−3.1
Green Maureen Miller1207.1+0.6
Majority 60135.6+8.8
Turnout 1,68831.4−0.8
Conservative hold Swing
Grange [8]
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Labour John Swain52847.7+3.2
Conservative William Dowdle31928.8+11.1
Liberal Democrats Sharam Mesdaghi25923.4−14.5
Majority 20918.9+12.3
Turnout 1,10622.3−1.3
Labour hold Swing
Halton Brook [8]
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Labour Stefan Nelson55243.9+5.1
Liberal Democrats Louise Whitley55143.9−11.1
Conservative Patricia Parkinson15312.2+6.0
Majority 10.1
Turnout 1,25626.3−0.5
Labour hold Swing
Halton Lea [8]
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Labour David Thompson54350.1−2.6
Conservative Ian Adams25023.1+6.9
Liberal Democrats Janet Clein19417.9−4.1
Citizens Party of HaltonMichael Gelling978.9−0.2
Majority 29327.0−3.7
Turnout 1,08423.6+1.4
Labour hold Swing
Halton View [8]
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Labour Robert Polhill65837.9−4.4
Green Derek Mellor52830.4+6.8
Liberal Democrats Anna Curzon33619.4−2.5
Conservative Denis Thomas21312.3+0.1
Majority 1307.5−11.2
Turnout 1,73533.7+1.7
Labour hold Swing
Heath [8]
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Liberal Democrats Michael Hodgkinson1,19470.3+15.5
Conservative Barbara Price32319.0+2.5
Labour Tedie Cole18110.7−2.0
Majority 87151.3+13.0
Turnout 1,69837.1−1.1
Liberal Democrats hold Swing
Hough Green [8]
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Labour Paul Nolan63048.9−4.5
Conservative Ruth Rowan40331.3+6.7
Liberal Democrats Stephen Hare14811.5−0.5
Green Miriam Hodgson1078.3−1.7
Majority 22717.6−11.2
Turnout 1,28824.1+0.7
Labour hold Swing
Kingsway [8]
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Labour Margaret Horabin57059.0−5.1
Conservative Frank Lloyd21722.5+3.1
Green Linda Mellor929.5−7.0
Liberal Democrats Damian Curzon879.0+9.0
Majority 35336.5−8.2
Turnout 96620.2−1.1
Labour hold Swing
Mersey [8]
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Liberal Democrats Sue Blackmore63451.8−2.3
Labour Norman Plumpton38231.2−2.3
Conservative Duncan Harper20716.9+4.5
Majority 25220.6+0.0
Turnout 1,22325.9−0.1
Liberal Democrats hold Swing
Norton North [8]
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Liberal Democrats Dave Austin86360.0+2.0
Labour Peter Lloyd Jones32722.7−7.3
Conservative Mark Walsh24917.3+5.2
Majority 53637.2+9.2
Turnout 1,43929.3+0.1
Liberal Democrats hold Swing
Norton South [8]
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Labour Ronald Hignett58761.5−1.8
Liberal Democrats Andrew Whitley21522.5−4.3
Conservative David Masheder15215.9+6.0
Majority 37239.0+2.5
Turnout 95420.1−0.3
Labour hold Swing
Riverside [8]
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Labour David Leadbetter44164.6+0.4
Conservative Margaret Hill12618.4+7.3
Liberal Democrats Paul Meara11617.0−7.7
Majority 31546.1+6.6
Turnout 68319.3−1.5
Labour hold Swing
Windmill Hill [8]
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Liberal Democrats Mike Shepperd22360.1+15.1
Labour Arthur Cole14839.9−4.9
Majority 7520.2+20.0
Turnout 37122.5
Liberal Democrats hold Swing

References

  1. ↑ "Halton". BBC News. 19 April 2008. Retrieved 2 March 2010.
  2. ↑ "Recounts and drawing lots – the final picture around the region after election night". Liverpool Daily Post . 3 May 2008. p. 5.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Ineos plant and bridge key". Liverpool Daily Post . 26 April 2008. p. 11.
  4. ↑ "Revealed today – Halton's election line-up". Runcorn and Widnes World. 4 April 2008. Retrieved 3 March 2010.
  5. 1 2 3 "And the winner is.. tie sees draw from envelope". Liverpool Echo. 2 May 2008. p. 2.
  6. 1 2 "Election result decided by straw poll". Runcorn and Widnes World. 2 May 2008. Retrieved 3 March 2010.
  7. 1 2 Sharpe, Laura (2 May 2008). "Labour holds Halton stronghold". Liverpool Daily Post . p. 5.
  8. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 "Halton local election results 2008". Halton Borough Council. Retrieved 2 March 2010.[ dead link ]
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