ALEX Collingwood has won the vote to become the new Conservative Leader at Wycombe District Council.

Councillor Collingwood has risen to prominence in recent months as a powerful voice in the community stadium debate as chairman of the scrutiny committee.

He beat fellow Marlow Cllr Richard Scott in the leadership contest at the Wycombe Conservative Group.

Cllr Collingwood said he had won the leadership contest in the Wycombe Conservative Group, with a 'good comfortable majority'.

He replaces Lesley Clarke who has stepped down. She remains Leader until May 23.

The Marlow ward councillor, who was re-elected late yesterday evening, takes over alongside two Deputy Leaders.

These are Cllrs David Carroll and Arif Hussain.

Cllr Scott was running for the leadership with current Deputy Leader Cllr Tony Green as his number two. .

The first point of call will be to sit down and talk with Chief Executive Karen Satterford on Monday, Cllr Collingwood said.

Then he will decide on who to appoint as Cabinet members before making further plans about future policy.

He told the BFP this afternoon: “It's a great honour, I feel very privileged.

"It's a great set of councillors that have been elected for us.

“I'm obviously sad some of our other councillors were not successful. It's all been a blur.

"It was only at 7.30pm last night I knew I had been re-elected as a councillor.”

Cllr Collingwood was involved in a frosty exchange with outgoing Leader Cllr Clarke during a meeting on the stadium.

He told the Cabinet that, among a ream of problems his committee had found with the plans for the project at Wycombe Air Park in Booker, Great Marlow, no 'very special circumstances' had been identified.

It is likely his election as Leader will be welcomed by anti-stadium campaigners.

Cllr Collingwood was the most popular choice on the online poll during the BFP's live election coverage yesterday.

Cllr Carroll retained his seat in Hughenden without a vote being cast.

Three Tories in the ward were elected unopposed because no other candidates were put forward.

Cllr Carroll and Cllr Hussain will be given different set of responsibilities in their roles as joint Deputy Leaders.

The new make up of the council is as follows:

Conservatives - 42 seats - 53% of the vote

Liberal Democrats - 8 seats - 23%

Labour - 7 seats - 16%

Independents - 2 seats - 6%

UKIP - 1 seat - < 1%

Turnout: 41%