Conservatives snatch one ward as others tumble

11 May 2006

Conservative winners in Queensbury, Robert Dunwell and Kanta Mistry, recorded the highest personal votes in the borough

THEY may have done well throughout the country but the Conservative party saw their Brent seats whittled down to 15.

While the Lib Dems were popping champagne corks and the Labour councillors were walking around in a state of disbelief, the Conservative party took their poor results on the chin.

Even though the traditionally strong blue wards in Northwick Park, Preston, Barnhill and Kenton remained loyal, there was no getting away from the fact they gained no extra seats instead witnessing their 2002 figure of 19 drop to 15.

They did snatch Queensbury away from Labour but they lost popular councillor Jack Sayers in Mapesbury and all three seats in Tokyngton and Brondesbury Park.

The loss of the latter is a double blow to the Tories as one of their councillors, Carol Shaw, defected to the Lib Dems three years ago.

Despite a disappointing outcome, in a strange twist of fate, the three highest numbers of individual votes were gained by Tories, including Cllr Bob Blackman, leader for the Brent Conservatives and GLA member for Brent & Harrow.

He told the Times: "I think it's quite clear that what happened in Brent east in particular and it happened in Tokyngton, was we had the effects of Sarah Teather as the MP running the campaign and being the main face of the campaign.

"In Tokyngton, for example, there were three letters to every voter from Sarah Teather. She's not the MP for Tokyngton. The Liberals used her and her capability to the utmost."

The current hung council status means Cllr Blackman will have to lock heads with his rivals, something that he's happy to do for the benefit of the borough, he said: "What the voters have given us is that no party controls the council and what we as politicians have to do is get serious about running the borough for the benefit of the residents, as opposed to people wanting to possibly run the borough for the benefit of themselves or their parties.

"It does mean politicians from all sides will have to cooperate for the benefit of the residents."

Expressing his pessimism about a three-party council working, he said: "I don't see that there's going to be a mood of cooperation with the Liberal Democrats at all, but we'll see.