Twenty councillors quit Labour in Starmer protest

Twenty councillors have quit Labour in protest at the party’s direction under Sir Keir Starmer.

The councillors – from Broxtowe Borough Council in Nottinghamshire – claimed the party had “abandoned traditional Labour values” and criticised policies such as cutting the winter fuel allowance for some pensioners.

Council leader Milan Radulovic, who had been a party member for 42 years, is among those walking away from Labour.

A local Labour spokesperson said the decision by some councillors to sit as independent 18 months after they were elected was “incredibly disappointing”.

The councillors said they would establish a new independent party, planning to run the borough council as a minority administration in the short-term, but may need support from existing independents in order to keep control.

They claimed 10 of them had been blocked from standing for Labour at upcoming local elections for Nottinghamshire County Council after questioning the winter fuel policy.

Radulovic said of the move that he was “deeply saddened” but had been placed in an “impossible position”.

“I cannot support and will not support another centrist government intent on destroying local democracy and dictating national policy from a high pedestal,” he said.

He also criticised plans to reorganise local government, which could see district and borough councils scrapped.

“I believe the concentration of power in the hands of fewer people and the abolition of local democracy through the current proposals of super councils is nothing short of a dictatorship, where local elected members, local people, local residents will have no say over the type and level of service provided in their area,” he said.

The group said 100 local grassroots members had also left Labour.

Broxtowe Labour Councillors said: “It is incredibly disappointing that some Broxtowe councillors have decided to leave the Labour Party and sit as independents when they were elected on a Labour ticket just over 18 months ago.

“These defections have no effect on the commitment of the remaining Labour Councillors in serving our residents.

“We, together with our Labour colleagues including MPs Juliet Campbell and Alex Norris, will continue to work to make Broxtowe a healthier, greener, safer and more prosperous place for everyone as change begins under this Labour government.”

By Hugh Casswell, political reporter, BBC Nottingham

Relations between Broxtowe Labour and the national party have been frosty for some time.

A row broke out in 2023 over the process to select a parliamentary candidate for the area, and Milan Radulovic has never been shy about speaking out.

Doubtless, some of what has prompted these defections is both parochial and personal in nature.

But the party may be more concerned that grassroots criticism of government policy extends well beyond the borders of Broxtowe.