Here We Go Again

The Timeline at Warwickshire County Council. Below we give you an list of what has happened since the elections in May 

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1^st May: Reform win 23/57, 14 LibDems, 9 Con, 7 Green, 3 Lab 1 Ind. Later Reform lose 1 to Ind because he didn’t have permission of his RAF line management. North Warks and Nuneaton & Bedworth districts almost all Reform. None in Warwick District – see map.

16^th May: Council elects Reform Cllr Howard as Leader (in his absence on holiday) and Reform Cllr Harris as Chair with support from Tories. Lib Dem nominate Cllr jerry Roodhouse but fails to get enough support.

30^th May: Cllr Howard announces Cabinet with Cllr George Finch (then aged 18) as Deputy Leader

10^th Jun: Cllr Howard announces final Cabinet Portfolio Holder

26^th Jun: Cllr Howard resigns as Leader citing ill-health. Cllr Finch takes over as interim WCC Leader

1^st Jul: Cllr Finch publicly criticises WCC CEO for refusing to take down Pride flag

2^nd Jul: Cllr Finch celebrated at LGA Conference by Jaymey McIvor, Reform Director of Local Government

11^th Jul: Reform group confirm Cllr Finch as new Group Leader. Finch turns 19.

10^th Jul: Cllr Finch in Cabinet meeting says that Council officers don’t see much from the outside world. In the same meeting another Reform Cabinet member lambasts woke culture when presenting Council’s annual Anti Human Trafficking statement.

16^th Jul: Cllr Finch announces plans for political assistants at WCC costing £150-190k pa saying Council staff "unable to help come up with the imaginative ideas”. Local Lib Dems will oppose wanting any spare cash for front line work.

18^th Jul: Cllr Finch publicly slams action of Bilton School in Rugby in preventing a 12 year old pupil speaking about British values at a culture day as ‘disgraceful’.

22^nd Jul: Agenda for Council will seek to elect Cllr Finch as new Council Leader but needs Tory support. Lib Dems will nominate Cllr Roodhouse. Outcome depends on how many will get behind us. Lib Dems also to propose motion on need for Local Transport plan and have posted questions re mismanagement of capital highways projects.

22^nd Jul: WCC Council was attended by a full public gallery and a Reform Cllr from Essex believed to Jaymey McIvor. Cllr Finch elected as new Council Leader after a tied 23 vs 23 recorded vote amongst cllrs with all nine Conservative councillors abstaining. Other highlights in the meeting include several Reform councillors saying climate change is disputed by scientists and that cycle routes and DEI programmes are a waste of time. The Reform Transport Portfolio Holder did not speak in a debate, put forward by Lib Dems and passed unanimously, about Highways projects and left the meeting early so was unable to answer questions on Highways matters. Reform councillors, led by Cllr Finch, also voted to defer a £4M Highways project in North Warwickshire having voted for it unanimously in Cabinet the previous week.

Cllr Finch did several major TV interviews on the Shire Hall steps although refused to answer media questions. Cllr Roodhouse also did several media interviews including BBC, Channel 4 and Channel 5.

23^rd Jul: Media interest continues with Cllr Finch saying that age shouldn’t be an issue just as (sic) no one questions Trump or Biden’s age! Cllr Roodhouse does further media interviews including with The Times and The New York Times.

LibDem group release a media statement calling for the ‘Reform Leadership in Warwickshire’ to come clean about the absence of the Transport Portfolio Holder whose attendance at Council meetings since 1^st May has been 29%. 

24^th Jul: Cllr Finch announces he’ll announce his new Cabinet and Portfolio Holder at Leader’s Decision meeting on 1^st August. LibDem group issues statement online with film from site of deferred Highways project in North Warwickshire.