Could annual council leader switch break deadlock?

Councillors in Kirklees are due to vote for the third time later in a bid to appoint a leader for the local authority.

A previous vote in May ended 29-29 with neither Green Party head Andrew Cooper nor Reform UK group leader Sarah Wood getting a majority.

That came after the council's annual meeting following May's local elections when councillors first failed to decide who should lead the authority.

Wood has tabled a motion that the Reform group, as the single party with the most councillors, be allowed to take control. An amendment added by Cooper, who is the combined candidate for the Greens, Lib Dems, and Independents, suggested whoever is chosen should only serve for one year.

Currently the leader of Kirklees Council remains in post for four years.

The idea was tabled by long-serving Mirfield Conservative councillor Martyn Bolt in a bid to break the deadlock.

He said: "Instead of it being four years, it should be one year.

"(That's) because the council numbers can change and so we need to reflect that and not put somebody in when they might not have a mandate to do so

"In this situation where councilor Cooper has roughly the same number of supporters, maybe more now than Councillor Wood from Reform since she lost a couple of them.

"Then they should look at how their numbers on the council can be reflected in running the council."

He cited the example of Conservative leader David Cameron and Liberal Democrat leader Nick Clegg who formed a coalition government in 2010 taking the prime minister role and deputy respectively.

"In this situation you could either have, as the Green party have, co-leaders so they could share it equally," Bolt said.

"Or you agree a premise where one is leader, and one is deputy, but with safeguards in place so that they have equal responsibility."

Bolt is one of nine Conservatives who have refused to back either candidate, with Cooper suggesting they use their casting vote to settle the issue.

He said: "At every election councillors, before the results are declared, get to see what are called the spoiled ballots.

"And there is often a comment in every election that somebody puts 'none of the above'.

"That's been the Conservative position so far. We didn't agree with either candidate, so why would you vote for somebody that you don't agree with?"

Two Reform UK councillors have resigned since May's local elections.

But it remains the largest single party with 27 out of a total of 69 seats, but falls short of a majority.

The Greens have 12, Independents 12, Conservatives nine, Liberal Democrats five, and Valley Independent Group three.

A by-election will be held on August 13 for a vacant seat in Almondbury after Reform UK councillor Craig Wiles stepped down.

Susan Maxfield, who was newly elected to the Liversedge and Gomersal ward, will now stand as an Independent.

The council is under a statutory duty to elect a leader and has legal duties to operate effective executive arrangements (i.e. must at all times have a leader and cabinet) under the Local Government Act 2000.

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