Newcastle First make election history as Labour sees vote drop

The local campaign group pledged to ‘bring a new style of politics to the city’ after taking a seat from the ruling Labour group in Callerton and Throckley, where anger over plans for a new opencast mine has dominated the agenda.

• Local Elections Live 2019: North-East and North Yorkshire

Liberal Democrat Gareth Kane also made his return to the council, reclaiming the hotly-contested Ouseburn seat that he had lost to Labour by just 12 votes last year.

While Labour maintains firm control of the local authority, with 54 of its 78 councillors, council leader Nick Forbes bemoaned his party’s stance on Brexit as the main cause of losses across the region.

Newcastle Labour leader Nick Forbes, long-serving councillor Lord Jeremy Beecham, and Coun Karen Kilgour at the Newcastle City Council local election count

The pro-Remain council leader said: “Overall these were not a bad set of results for Labour in Newcastle given the national context and what we are starting to see in many other towns and cities around the country.

“Obviously it is disappointing to lose a couple of seats, but I think that is partly due to a depression in the Labour vote – people staying at home because they are not happy with the Labour Party’s position on Brexit – and, in some parts of the city, particular local issues where independents have made a breakthrough on the basis of a single issue campaign.”

Labour’s share of the vote in Newcastle dropped from 48% in 2018 to 38% this year, and Coun Forbes said he had “never known politics be quite so volatile and voters so ready to switch votes in local elections on the basis of national issues”.

He added: “The Labour Party nationally has tried to appease both Leavers and Remainers with its position on Brexit. As a result, I don’t think it has pleased either side particularly well and I think it is time for the party to think again about what its position is on Brexit.”

Despite uncertainty over his political future, after he missed out on Labour’s nomination to become North of Tyne mayor, Coun Forbes has pledged to stand again to keep his place as the party’s leader in Newcastle.

It was a historic night for Newcastle First, as Ian Donaldson became their first elected councillor since the party was established in 2011.

Taking advantage of the community outcry over Banks Mining’s plans to dig a new opencast mine at Dewley Hill, Mr Donaldson finished more than 100 votes ahead of Labour incumbent Marion Williams.

He said: “I am a local lad and I have lived on the ward my entire life. I feel as though people have been taken for granted for quite a while now in my part of the world, so I am delighted to be elected.”

Party founder Jason Smith added: “It gives us huge humility to have someone elected. He is a hardworking local person who wanted to come forward and change his community and that is what Newcastle First is all about – local people bringing a new style of politics to the city.

“We are fed up with national politics and we want to put local people and the community first.”

Going into election night, Ouseburn was very much the ward to watch – with battle resuming between Mr Kane and the man who ousted him last year, Labour’s Stephen Powers.

But the result this year proved nowhere near as dramatic as last year, as the Liberal Democrat reclaimed the seat he had previously held for 14 years by a comfortable margin of 247.

He said: “I am delighted and a little bit surprised. A couple of hours ago I was in the pub wondering how it was going to go, you can never tell with Ouseburn because it is a very unpredictable ward.”Lib Dem leader Anita Lower said the party’s resurgence across the country “shows that the Lib Dems are back, we are now back to being a credible alternative”.

While the Lib Dem share of the vote dipped by 1% compared to last year, both the Greens and UKIP gained support – albeit without claiming a seat on the council.

Turnout at this year’s local elections in Newcastle was 37.5% – slightly down on 2018’s 38.8%, but significantly better than some predictions early in the night had indicated.

The political makeup of the council is now: Labour 54, Liberal Democrat 20, Independent 3, Newcastle First 1.

While the Chapel ward remains fully occupied by three independent councillors, incumbent Olga Shorton was defeated an independent challenger in Sandra Davison.

Newcastle City Council election results

Political makeup of Newcastle City Council is now: Labour 54 (-2), Lib Dem 20 (+1), Independent 3 (+/-0), Newcastle First 1 (+1)
 
Arthur’s Hill:
Joanne Kingsland (Lab) 995
Adam Mitchell (Newcastle First) 122
Luigi Murton (Con) 105
Shehla Naqvi (G) 141
William Shepherd (LD) 59
LABOUR HOLD
 
Benwell and Scotswood:
Tom Adams (G) 126
Hans Andersen (LD) 133
Jeremy Beecham (Lab) 1281
Liam Bones (Con) 233
Jason Smith (Newcastle First) 326
Ernest Thornton (UKIP) 437
LABOUR HOLD
 
Blakelaw:
Rachel Dunfield (G) 113
Linda Hobson (Lab) 910
Gerry Langley (Con) 168
Tony Sanderson (UKIP) 373
Bill Schardt (LD) 220
LABOUR HOLD
 
Byker:
Jacqui Gilchrist (Ind) 200
Nick Hartley (G) 194
Nick Kemp (Lab) 1109
Stephen Psallidas (LD) 83
Neil Ruston (UKIP) 339
Tom Towle (Con) 103
LABOUR HOLD
 
Callerton and Throckley:
Lyle Darwin (Con) 361
Ian Donaldson (Newcastle First) 787
Idwal John (G) 270
Aleisha Stansfield (LD) 215
Marion Williams (Lab) 676
NEWCASTLE FIRST GAIN
 
Castle:
Ali Avaei (LD) 1085
Rachel Locke (Ind) 237
Tim Marron (UKIP) 331
Andrew Thorp (G) 189
Mary Toward (Con) 394
Gordana Vasic (Lab) 945
LIB DEM HOLD
 
Chapel:
Beryl Condra (Con) 301
Sandra Davison (Ind) 2320
Bill Purvis (Lab) 494
Olga Shorton (Ind) 393
Judith Steen (LD) 69
INDEPENDENT HOLD
 
Dene and South Gosforth:
Nick Arnold (Lab) 1023
Jason Birt (Con) 278
Anna Foster (G) 497
Henry Gallagher (LD) 1639
David Muat (UKIP) 217
LIB DEM HOLD
 
Denton and Westerhope:
Simon Barnes (Lab) 1028
Leanne Conway-Wilcox (Con) 190
Ian McKinnell (UKIP) 376
Tracey Mitchell (Ind) 908
Brian Moore (Ind) 240
Jackie Slesenger (LD) 85
LABOUR HOLD
 
Elswick:
Margaret Birkmyre (Con) 206
David Faulkner (LD) 161
Habib Rahman (Lab) 1585
Peter Thomson (G) 248
LABOUR HOLD
 
Fawdon and West Gosforth:
Steve Axford (Con) 265
Sandy Irvine (G) 270
Peter Lovatt (LD) 1615
Adam Walker (Lab) 619
LIB DEM HOLD
 
Gosforth:
Craig Dawson (Lab) 779
Alistair Ford (G) 514
Steve Kyte (Con) 1029
Tom Woodwark (LD) 1591
LIB DEM HOLD
 
Heaton:
Christopher Boyle (LD) 502
John Dobie (Con) 237
Andew Gray (G) 787
John-Paul Stephenson (Lab) 1314
LABOUR HOLD
 
Kenton:
Robert Austin (LD) 557
Anya Durrant (Lab) 1112
Oisin Gourley (Socialist Alternative) 238
Alison Wake (Con) 386
LABOUR HOLD
 
Kingston Park South and Newbiggin Hall:
Scott Jewitt (Con) 614
Jacqui Robinson (Lab) 1180
Colin Steen (LD) 304
LABOUR HOLD
 
Lemington:
Simon Bell (Con) 239
Rick Dunfield (G) 122
John Gordon (Newcastle First) 844
Robert Petrie (LD) 120
Kyle Webster (Lab) 944
LABOUR HOLD
 
Manor Park:
Paul Dyer (Con) 293
Matthew Folker (LD) 1665
Charlie Gray (Lab) 964
LIB DEM HOLD
 
Monument (2 seats available):
Hamed Aghajari (LD) 188
Cliff Brown (G) 371
Teresa Cairns (Lab) 663
Stephen Dawes (Con) 178
Richard Fleetwood (LD) 232
Shumel Rahman (Lab) 485
Dewi Roberts (Con) 152
LABOUR HOLD X 2
 
North Jesmond:
Alex Hay (Lab) 577
Gerry Keating (LD) 1018
Kitty Lau (Con) 169
Tony Waterston (G) 267
LIB DEM HOLD
 
Ouseburn:
Alastair Bonnett (G) 194
Jason Carr (Con) 65
Gareth Kane (LD) 1012
Stephen Powers (Lab) 765
LIB DEM GAIN
 
Parklands:
John Hall (Ind) 512
James Milne (G) 347
Christine Morrissey (LD) 1602
Laura Repton (Lab) 660
John Urquhart (Ind) 226
John Watts (Con) 771
LIB DEM HOLD
 
South Jesmond:
Clare Andrews (G) 489
Deborah Burns (LD) 360
Martin Levy (Communist) 24
Ian MacGlip (Con) 286
Lesley Storey (Lab) 679
LABOUR HOLD
 
Walker:
Joan Atkin (Con) 150
Glen Bolton (UKIP) 650
Adrin Neatrour (LD) 143
Margaret Wood (Lab) 1083
LABOUR HOLD
 
Walkergate:
Andrew Bulman (Con) 263
Ian Farrelly (UKIP) 690
Paul Frew (Lab) 1229
Deborah Gallagher (LD) 417
Daryl Hughes (G) 175
LABOUR HOLD
 
West Fenham:
Sarah Armstrong (Newcastle First) 183 
Sylvia Copley (Lab) 1008
Libby Dicken (LD) 131
Tay Pitman (G) 256
John Richardson (UKIP) 478
Ken Wake (Con) 228
LABOUR HOLD
 
Wingrove:
Joseph Eldridge (Newcastle First) 231
Kami Kundi (LD) 307
John Pearson (G) 342
Rebecca Shatwell (Lab) 1452
Lauren Sykes (Con) 262
LABOUR HOLD
 
Turnout: 37.5%