Lib Dems scoop Tory council seat (From Bucks Free Press)
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Lib Dems scoop Tory seat on Wycombe District Council
12:25pm Friday 7th May 2010 in Elections By Oliver Evans
Lib Dems scoop Tory council seat
THE Liberal Democrats have snatched a seat off the Conservatives at a by-election on Wycombe District Council.
Jen Joseph won with 1,234 votes to Conservative Lashing Wanigasooriya’s 1,017 and Ian Bates’s 524 for Labour.
The by-election was called after sitting Tory member Joel Foley resigned to move away from the area.
It means the Lib Dems have eight councillors to the ruling Conservatives’’ 46. There are also two independents, two Labour and one member with no political party.
Cllr Joseph, a former HR worker for the council, said: “I am so proud of people of Totteridge for showing me their confidence by putting a cross next to my name.
“My priorities are whatever the priorities of the residents are.”
Group leader Cllr Steve Guy, who holds the other Totteridge seat on WDC, said the result was ‘fabulous’.
He said: “I think that both results in the General Election and in Totteridge by-election clearly shows that people are not interested with the ways of the Conservatives.
“People in Wycombe see the Lib Dems as providing an alternative.”
He took the seat from Labour at a by-election last year following the death of Councillor Glyn Galbraith.
The party has been a vocal critic of controversial Tory moves including the closure of Holywell Mead outdoor swimming pool.
But deputy council leader, Conservative Cllr Tony Green said the change would not affect the balance of power on the council.
He said: “It makes no difference, we still have got a considerable majority.
“Totteridge was always a marginal seat, I don’t see it as a comment on the Conservative administration.”
Yet an angry Mr Foley, who announced he is stepping down in March, hit out at Cllr Green's comments.
He said: "I am personally insulted by Tony Green's comments that it 'makes no difference' that conservatives lost this seat.
"I worked consistently hard for Totteridge and its disappointing to hear senior conservatives say that.
"It matters every time a seat is lost by any party.
"Congratulations to Cllr Joseph and best wishes to Lakshan Wanigasooriya, who at least understands that the party must listen to the residents of Totteridge.
Mr Wanigasooriya said: “I think the people have spoken and we must listen to what they have to say. I will continue to engage with people who have placed trust in me.”
Labour’s loss comes after it last year lost its final seats on Buckinghamshire County Council and slipped into third place at the Wycombe General Election count last night.
Mr Bates said: “I am disappointed I didn’t do better. Our supporters are still there.”
What do you think? Leave your comments below.
Comments(21)
demoness
says...
12:46pm Fri 7 May 10
BUT St Steve of Guy.... make no mistake.
You L O S T! If people are not interested in the ways of the conservatives then you would have one or at least not lost by such a sizable majority.
Your leader had the grace to say that it was a disappointment for the lib dems. He acknowledged that in the end people went with what they knew best.
Yes lib dems are the second party round here, but that is hardly a surprise.
You failed to win over the people of High Wycombe
Try being a gracious loser. You may get more respect for it.
wayneo
says...
1:36pm Fri 7 May 10
demoness wrote:Got to agree with that Demoness; let's just hope Mr Baker now breaks free from having to be nice and cosy with the Conversative association and now tells us what he stands for because as I see it at the moment, he's a party man through-and-through. Hoep he proves me wrong.
i think that the tory council does need more opposition so good for her. BUT St Steve of Guy.... make no mistake. You L O S T! If people are not interested in the ways of the conservatives then you would have one or at least not lost by such a sizable majority. Your leader had the grace to say that it was a disappointment for the lib dems. He acknowledged that in the end people went with what they knew best. Yes lib dems are the second party round here, but that is hardly a surprise. You failed to win over the people of High Wycombe Try being a gracious loser. You may get more respect for it.
wulfie49
says...
2:15pm Fri 7 May 10
True, he LOST! Then he says “People in Wycombe see the Lib Dems as providing an alternative”.
Well, the people of Totteridge certainly can't see him as their councillor! The Invisible Guy is never seen around the ward. I just hope that Ms Joseph puts herself about a little more.
Oh, and the Bucks Free reporters strike again! If they'd read the leaflets, they would have called the Conservative candidate by his real name: LAKSHAN Wanigasooriya, not Lashing. Just goes to show how little they care about anyone except the Lib Dems.
demoness
says...
3:21pm Fri 7 May 10
wulfie49 wrote:This is my point Wulfie - I have said all along that Mr Guy was using Totteridge to further his own political ends and quite frankly it is disgraceful.
Demoness, I agree with your assessment of Steve Guy, except in one respect. True, he LOST! Then he says “People in Wycombe see the Lib Dems as providing an alternative”. Well, the people of Totteridge certainly can't see him as their councillor! The Invisible Guy is never seen around the ward. I just hope that Ms Joseph puts herself about a little more. Oh, and the Bucks Free reporters strike again! If they'd read the leaflets, they would have called the Conservative candidate by his real name: LAKSHAN Wanigasooriya, not Lashing. Just goes to show how little they care about anyone except the Lib Dems.
Well he is out of the running for now - lets see him pay some attention to the local people who he purports to support so much.
yog
says...
4:03pm Fri 7 May 10
This is the reason more and more people in Wycombe are turning to the Liberal Democrats.
This arrogant attitude highlighted yet again by Cllr Green shows how out of touch the Conservatives are with the views of residents in Wycombe.
The leadership of Wycombe District Council is failing and until Wycombe Conservatives start listening to the concerns of residents then they will continue to haemorrhage support to the Liberal Democrats.
demoness
says...
4:27pm Fri 7 May 10
yog wrote:I sort of agree with you to a point.
"Conservative Cllr Tony Green said: “It makes no difference, we still have got a considerable majority." This is the reason more and more people in Wycombe are turning to the Liberal Democrats. This arrogant attitude highlighted yet again by Cllr Green shows how out of touch the Conservatives are with the views of residents in Wycombe. The leadership of Wycombe District Council is failing and until Wycombe Conservatives start listening to the concerns of residents then they will continue to haemorrhage support to the Liberal Democrats.
The people of wycombe have proved within a shadow of a doubt that they do not want a lib dem MP.
BUT I do think this tory council need some strong opposition so good luck to anyone who feels like challenging them.
lidopraiser
says...
5:22pm Fri 7 May 10
demoness
says...
5:38pm Fri 7 May 10
lidopraiser wrote:Well of course the good news is he will be able to spend even more time on casework now.
Steve Guy has actually been very active around Totteridge with casework, but that of course, cannot be publicised.
I bet he is really pleased.
wayneo
says...
6:38pm Fri 7 May 10
yog wrote:For once, I agree with you Yog.
"Conservative Cllr Tony Green said: “It makes no difference, we still have got a considerable majority." This is the reason more and more people in Wycombe are turning to the Liberal Democrats. This arrogant attitude highlighted yet again by Cllr Green shows how out of touch the Conservatives are with the views of residents in Wycombe. The leadership of Wycombe District Council is failing and until Wycombe Conservatives start listening to the concerns of residents then they will continue to haemorrhage support to the Liberal Democrats.
hondo
says...
7:54pm Fri 7 May 10
Roll on next May so we can get rid of the rest of the spendthrift incompetents.
Save Wycombe
says...
9:20pm Fri 7 May 10
wulfie49 wrote:I saw this smear on leaflets from other parties. What do they mean? Should Steve spend his days wandering around Totteridge wearing a neon sign? What silliness
Demoness, I agree with your assessment of Steve Guy, except in one respect.
True, he LOST! Then he says “People in Wycombe see the Lib Dems as providing an alternative”.
Well, the people of Totteridge certainly can't see him as their councillor! The Invisible Guy is never seen around the ward. I just hope that Ms Joseph puts herself about a little more.
Oh, and the Bucks Free reporters strike again! If they'd read the leaflets, they would have called the Conservative candidate by his real name: LAKSHAN Wanigasooriya, not Lashing. Just goes to show how little they care about anyone except the Lib Dems.
OllieNewbury
says...
9:26pm Fri 7 May 10
demoness wrote:Well not entirely. 13,000 voted Lib Dem in Wycombe, up 5,000 from 2005. Unfortunately the Tories are always going to win because of the surrounding countryside.
yog wrote:I sort of agree with you to a point.
"Conservative Cllr Tony Green said: “It makes no difference, we still have got a considerable majority." This is the reason more and more people in Wycombe are turning to the Liberal Democrats. This arrogant attitude highlighted yet again by Cllr Green shows how out of touch the Conservatives are with the views of residents in Wycombe. The leadership of Wycombe District Council is failing and until Wycombe Conservatives start listening to the concerns of residents then they will continue to haemorrhage support to the Liberal Democrats.
The people of wycombe have proved within a shadow of a doubt that they do not want a lib dem MP.
BUT I do think this tory council need some strong opposition so good luck to anyone who feels like challenging them.
demoness
says...
10:32pm Fri 7 May 10
OllieNewbury wrote:The majority was still over 10,000- not really convincing enough no matter how St Steve of Guy and his cronies like to play it.
demoness wrote:Well not entirely. 13,000 voted Lib Dem in Wycombe, up 5,000 from 2005. Unfortunately the Tories are always going to win because of the surrounding countryside.yog wrote: "Conservative Cllr Tony Green said: “It makes no difference, we still have got a considerable majority." This is the reason more and more people in Wycombe are turning to the Liberal Democrats. This arrogant attitude highlighted yet again by Cllr Green shows how out of touch the Conservatives are with the views of residents in Wycombe. The leadership of Wycombe District Council is failing and until Wycombe Conservatives start listening to the concerns of residents then they will continue to haemorrhage support to the Liberal Democrats.I sort of agree with you to a point. The people of wycombe have proved within a shadow of a doubt that they do not want a lib dem MP. BUT I do think this tory council need some strong opposition so good luck to anyone who feels like challenging them.
OllieNewbury
says...
11:19pm Fri 7 May 10
demoness wrote:Yes, but the votes of 13,000 people shouldn't really be swept under the carpet- I'd be saying that if it were Labour, UKIP, any of them.
OllieNewbury wrote:The majority was still over 10,000- not really convincing enough no matter how St Steve of Guy and his cronies like to play it.
demoness wrote:Well not entirely. 13,000 voted Lib Dem in Wycombe, up 5,000 from 2005. Unfortunately the Tories are always going to win because of the surrounding countryside.yog wrote: "Conservative Cllr Tony Green said: “It makes no difference, we still have got a considerable majority." This is the reason more and more people in Wycombe are turning to the Liberal Democrats. This arrogant attitude highlighted yet again by Cllr Green shows how out of touch the Conservatives are with the views of residents in Wycombe. The leadership of Wycombe District Council is failing and until Wycombe Conservatives start listening to the concerns of residents then they will continue to haemorrhage support to the Liberal Democrats.I sort of agree with you to a point. The people of wycombe have proved within a shadow of a doubt that they do not want a lib dem MP. BUT I do think this tory council need some strong opposition so good luck to anyone who feels like challenging them.
-
The point is that not everyone in Wycombe wants the Tories in. 23,000 wanted Tories, 13,800 wanted Lib Dems, 8,000 wanted Labour and 2,000 wanted UKIP. Under a democracy, everyone would have their say in the running of the country. Not with first-past-the-post! It's Tory and Tory only.
TheTeachersUnion
says...
2:35am Sat 8 May 10
demoness
says...
9:50am Sat 8 May 10
IF you are reading this, please take note.
You sir are rude. You have NO consideration for your voting public. Totteridge is now entirely lib dem and yet you still see that this is no reflection on your council.
WDC is not a democratic council. It is run by a large majority and it bullies people into getting what it wants.
It would not have killed you to say well done to this new councillor. NO ONE is indispensible. In the scheme of things you are not that important. Just a local councillor in a provincial town.
So stop thinking you are something you are not and learn humility.
Regards...
towncryer
says...
10:19am Sat 8 May 10
demoness wrote:Well said Demoness
Dear Tony Green.
IF you are reading this, please take note.
You sir are rude. You have NO consideration for your voting public. Totteridge is now entirely lib dem and yet you still see that this is no reflection on your council.
WDC is not a democratic council. It is run by a large majority and it bullies people into getting what it wants.
It would not have killed you to say well done to this new councillor. NO ONE is indispensible. In the scheme of things you are not that important. Just a local councillor in a provincial town.
So stop thinking you are something you are not and learn humility.
Regards...
I agree totally --for once
Green ,Clarke and the Tory minions have no respect with the residents and electorate of High Wycombe du to the disgusting way that The WDC Tories treat the Town . -The Tories of WDC now rely on their rural pursuits 4x4 , hunting and shooting fraternity to keep them in power!
Even Princes Risborough Town Council wanted to break away from WDC to go with Aylesbury Council recently
I am waiting to hear if Baker will speak out against his Tory Council !
Bakersfolly
says...
1:45pm Sat 8 May 10
Town Cryer makes a good point
-- now speak out against Clarke ,Green and the local Tories about the disgusting way they treat the residents of the district
roncoobie
says...
12:21am Mon 10 May 10
WDC councillors -- TAKE NOTE!!
The LibDems can quite easily take a fair n square bite out of the district apple because not everyone here is is blue, thru & thru. Probably due to the corrupt, shameful and "self-interested" way in which WDC has a tendency to act.... One thing is sure: we all Voted for Change. Let's hope that more letters from Demoness end up on more Councillors' desks. More Frequently!! ........ > Change is something only You Can Create < It doesn't just fall out of the branches of a new Government
HeartyR
says...
4:10pm Mon 10 May 10
wayneo says...
12:34pm Fri 7 May 10