South Gloucestershire Council has settled on its new leader and cabinet under the coalition between Liberal Democrat and Labour. 

The alliance replaces the Conservatives who were in power since 2015 but lost their overall majority at the polls on Thursday, May 4. 

The authority was placed into No Overall Control with Lib Dems and Labour locked in talks for two weeks to try to form a coalition.

Leadership and cabinet positions have now been revealed following a full council meeting yesterday, Wednesday, May 24.

Lib Dem leader Claire Young is confirmed as leader of the council, replacing the former leader Toby Savage who announced he was stepping down after the local elections. 

Meanwhile, Labour group leader Councillor Ian Boulton has been appointed as co-leader of the council. 

In addition cabinet positions have been announced, these are: 

  • Cllr Claire Young (Liberal Democrat): Leader of South Gloucestershire Council and cabinet member for council governance
  • Cllr Ian Boulton (Labour): Co-leader of South Gloucestershire Council and cabinet member for education, skills, employment and business
  • Cllr Chris Willmore (Liberal Democrat): Cabinet member for planning, regeneration, and infrastructure
  • Cllr Alison Evans (Labour): Cabinet member for cost of living, equalities and public health
  • Cllr Louise Harris (Liberal Democrat): Cabinet member for climate and nature emergency 
  • Cllr Maggie Tyrell (Liberal Democrat): Cabinet member for children and young people 
  • Cllr John O’Neil (Liberal Democrat): Cabinet member for adults and homes
  • Cllr Adam Monk (Labour): Cabinet member for resources
  • Cllr Leigh Ingham (Labour): Cabinet member for communities and local place 

Gazette Series: South Gloucestershire Council's new leader Cllr Claire Young and co-leader Cllr Ian Boulton South Gloucestershire Council's new leader Cllr Claire Young and co-leader Cllr Ian Boulton (Image: SGC)

Lead members from the other party for each of the portfolio areas above were also announced, as well as chairs for a number of committees, boards and partnerships.

The annual meeting was also the time to elect a new Chair and Vice Chair for SGC for the coming year which is appointed by a simple majority vote. 

Cllr Mike Drew was elected to serve as Chair of the Council and Cllr Franklin Owusu-Antwi was elected to serve as Vice Chair.

New SGC leader Claire Young said: “I am delighted to take on the role of council leader and very pleased to announce this new cabinet, which delivers a broad range of experience across the council’s work areas.

“This is an excellent opportunity to put forward a new vision for South Gloucestershire and to help improve the lives of local people. 

“We want to change the way decisions are made and work with residents and communities to ensure they are supportive of our plans.

“Our priorities include tackling the climate and nature emergency and helping residents with the cost of living crisis – both of these will be taken into account with all decision making. 

“We will also be focusing on improving the lives of children and families, working with schools to address educational inequalities, and promoting age friendly communities. 

“We will be developing a new local plan to protect South Gloucestershire from speculative development, working with health partners to improve the range of health services across the area and working with the West of England Combined Authority to identify improvements to bus services.”

After the May local elections, the Conservative group now holds 23 seats, the Liberal Democrats hold 20, Labour hold 17 seats and one independent candidate was also elected.

The Council’s AGM was held in the Council Chamber at Kingswood Civic Centre on Wednesday, May 24. 

To watch the full meeting see here - https://tinyurl.com/4ksy796a