Labour Party splits into two in Doncaster
Written by Mark Pack on 13th May 2008 – 10:00 amIt looks as if the impending self-imposed term limit for the Labour Mayor of Doncaster has helped trigger a split in the Labour Group. The current Labour Mayor, Martin Winter, has twice been elected as Mayor but Labour’s internal rules don’t allow someone to run for a third time. However,
Doncaster’s mayor, Martin Winter, has been given an ultimatum by party officials after it emerged he and two other leading Labour councillors in the borough had set up their own independent group in the wake of the local elections earlier this month.
Furious regional party officials have told Mayor Winter and cabinet members Stuart Exelby and Eva Hughes that they have until the end of next week to reverse their move or they will no longer be members of the Labour Party.
But locally, loyal Doncaster councillors believe there will be no turning back and the controversial mayor, who is in the last year of his second term in power, and his two colleagues made a calculated decision … [Labour] Coun Jameson described his party colleagues’ action as “a unilateral declaration of independence” which was potentially linked to Mayor Winter preparing to stand as an independent next year. “This would have been a considered decision and not something decided in the heat of the moment,” he said.
(Yorkshire Post)
The name of this new group? “The Labour Group”. Somehow, I don’t think this is going to end pleasantly…
Posted in Opposition watch
13th May 2008 at 10:22 am
Isn’t it Martin Winter, not Mark?
13th May 2008 at 10:31 am
Have just read the YP article - looks like it could be a very interesting Mayoral election in Doncaster next year!
Let’s hope we actually manage to put up a candidate this time…
13th May 2008 at 11:38 am
Storm in a nice cup of Yorkshire Tea. Slough looks more serious.
13th May 2008 at 12:44 pm
Joe: thanks, corrected.
13th May 2008 at 12:51 pm
The good folk of Doncaster want a referendum to scrap the position of Mayor, but Mr Winter’s office who apprently have the final say in these matters(!) has sat on the petition for several months. This defection is a desperate attempt by a man loathed throughout Doncaster to get re-elected next year.
14th May 2008 at 11:00 pm
From on the ground in Donny itself:- The man with the mightiest ego in yorkshire seems to have stabbed his party in the back. He won’t get much sympathy from the Independent or Lib Dem councillors who he has treated like dirt for years. He may well get the backing of the Tories (who booted out their only councillor that opposed their continual sycophancy towards Winter)
In response to Joe Taylor, there will prob again be no Lib Dem candidate for mayor. The entire local party support the campaign to abolish the job and will probably again back the Ind with the best chance of winning and calling the referendum that Winter and his unfortunate former colleagues have blocked.
15th May 2008 at 3:40 pm
Presumably these internal term limits are local to Doncaster? Otherwise Labour’s three London Borough Mayors will all be term-limited in 2010…?
15th May 2008 at 10:26 pm
Further update as this continues to unwind. Mayor Winter and 2 councillors have confirmed that they have left the Labour Party and set up a new alternative Doncaster Labour Party.
They have called their fellow comrades “maggots” and said that they are fed up with being bullied. Mmm… Martin Winter complaining about bullying…. Where did I put those black pots and kettles?
You can always rely on Doncaster for thrills!
27th May 2008 at 6:51 pm
For those interested in the ever baffling story - One of Winter’s colleagues has rejoined the Lab group, but stayed in his cabinet. Winter and his other colleague now say they want to stay in the Lab party, but sit in a new independent group in the council! Lab has told them to give up that idea or get booted out. No action on that yet.
Meanwhile, Lab and Cons carve up the committee chairs between themselves, even though the Mayor has now embraced a multiparty approach for the first time as part of his re-election campaign.
He carries on with a 3 member cabinet, as nobody else can work with him - and the council works out what to do about two govt reports criticising Donny for being the worst performing council in the country. Govt managers are preparing to take over.
At least we won the promotion playoff at Wembley!
And we have our first ever Lib Dem civil mayor (Thanks for the support Martin, but it won’t be enough to being to solve anything)
Anyway, two reasons to be cheerful.
Back to that thread on elected mayors again?