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13
Jul
Explained: What the new Green and Independents group means for North Yorkshire Council
A week is a long time in politics — and that is certainly the case when it comes to the changing makeup of North Yorkshire Council.
After a remarkable by-election three weeks ago, the ripple effect of Reform UK winning a landslide victory in Eastfield has had far reaching changes elsewhere on the council.
On Tuesday, a press release from the Green and Independents announced the formation of a new political alliance.
The move changes the makeup of the council again and — by definition — how councillors vote on the council.
But what does it mean and why has it happened?
What has happened?
Two members of the North Yorkshire Independents group of councillors on North Yorkshire Council have left to form a new group with members of the Green Party called the Green and Independents Political Grouping.
The group consists of all four Green councillors on the council: Kevin Foster, Andy Brown, David Noland and Arnold Warneken, as well as Independent councillors Cllr Paul Haslam, Cllr Mike Schofield and Cllr Kirsty Poskitt.
Cllr Schofield and Cllr Poskitt were previously part of the North Yorkshire Independents group, which included two members of Reform UK.
Why has this happened?
It comes after new Reform councillor Tom Seston was listed as a member of the NY Independents group along with Reform colleague Mike Jordan on the council’s website.
Cllr Seston won Scarborough’s Eastfield by-election by taking 62.7% of the vote in a by-election last month following the resignation of former Social Justice Party councillor Tony Randerson.
The winner of the Scarborough Eastfield by-election, Reform UK’s Tom Seston (left), with the chief executive of North Yorkshire Council, Richard Flinton.
However, in a statement on Tuesday, Cllr Schofield said he did not feel like he could work alongside a party like Reform because it had “very far right leanings and sections within it”.
The group also said it was formed “in response to increasing concerns about inequality, discrimination, and the accelerating climate and biodiversity crises”.
What have the party leaders said?
The Stray Ferret approached Cllr Stuart Parsons, who leads the NY Independents, to clarify the situation.
Cllr Parsons said the Local Government Association allocates councillors as independent if they are not Conservative, Labour or Liberal Democrat.
He added that he expected Reform UK to form their own group on the council.
He said:
It is a group decision. We were based on the previous situation at the LGA which meant that if you were not a Tory, Labour or Lib Dem then you were grouped as Independent.
Reform has told the LGA that they wish to form their own group and no longer be included in the Independent grouping.
Meanwhile, Cllr Mike Jordan, one of two Reform councillors, said the situation was “fluid”. However, the party does wish to form a group on the council.
What does all this mean?
The move leaves the opposition on the council fragmented.
While the Liberal Democrats remain the main opposition to the ruling Conservatives, there are now two separate independent groups and a potential further group from Reform UK to come.
The changes mean the Conservatives and Independent group remains the biggest group on the authority with 47 councillors, while the Liberal Democrats and Liberal have 14, Labour ten, the Green Party and Independents seven, North Yorkshire Independents seven without Reform and nine with, and then three councillors who are not in a political grouping.
Kevin Foster.
However, it also means that the ruling group will face further opposition on any plans to do with the environment and climate change.
Cllr Kevin Foster, Green Party councillor and leader of the new group, was bullish in his aims for the new alliance.
He said:
I’ve always had a collaborative approach, and I look forward to working within the new group. We’ll stand up for what’s right for the people we represent.
Even when councils are short of money, they cannot skimp on fairness and inclusivity. We’ve seen too much unkindness. And we can’t ignore the climate emergency. We can have jobs for workers, money in our pocket and great ways to get around if we build a green economy. It’s an opportunity, not an inconvenience – and it’s what our residents tell us they want.
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