Thurrock Council election, 2008
Encyclopedia
The 2008 Thurrock Council election took place on 1 May 2008 to elect members of Thurrock Council
in Essex
, England
. One third of the council was up for election and the council stayed under no overall control
.
After the election, the composition of the council was
needing to gain one seat to take overall control. Important issues in the election included recycling
, local bus services and race relations.
18 seats were contested in the election with the Tilbury
Riverside and Thurrock Park seat being a by-election
after the previous councillor
resigned. The Conservatives, Labour
and British National Party
contested all 18 seats except in East Tilbury where the Conservatives did not put up a candidate. There were also 8 Liberal Democrats and 2 other candidates.
Barry Palmer in East Tilbury.
While the Conservatives were still just short of an overall majority they remained in control of the council due to their existing agreement with the 2 independent councillor
s. Both main parties said they would not work with the new British National Party councillor, although she said she did not want to work with them anyway.
Following the election in March 2009, Terry Hipsey, the then Conservative leader of the council, defected from the Conservatives to Labour, leaving each of the major parties with 23 councillors.
Thurrock Council
Thurrock Council is the local authority for the borough of Thurrock in Essex, England. Since 1997, Thurrock has been a unitary authority, combining the functions of a non-metropolitan county with that of a non-metropolitan district....
in Essex
Essex
Essex is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England, and one of the home counties. It is located to the northeast of Greater London. It borders with Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent to the South and London to the south west...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. One third of the council was up for election and the council stayed under no overall control
No overall control
Within the context of local councils of the United Kingdom, the term No Overall Control refers to a situation in which no single party achieves a majority of seats and is analogous to a hung parliament...
.
After the election, the composition of the council was
- ConservativeConservative Party (UK)The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
24 - LabourLabour Party (UK)The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...
22 - IndependentIndependent (politician)In politics, an independent or non-party politician is an individual not affiliated to any political party. Independents may hold a centrist viewpoint between those of major political parties, a viewpoint more extreme than any major party, or they may have a viewpoint based on issues that they do...
2 - British National PartyBritish National PartyThe British National Party is a British far-right political party formed as a splinter group from the National Front by John Tyndall in 1982...
1
Campaign
The 2008 election in Thurrock was seen as one the key national contests with the ConservativesConservative Party (UK)
The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
needing to gain one seat to take overall control. Important issues in the election included recycling
Recycling
Recycling is processing used materials into new products to prevent waste of potentially useful materials, reduce the consumption of fresh raw materials, reduce energy usage, reduce air pollution and water pollution by reducing the need for "conventional" waste disposal, and lower greenhouse...
, local bus services and race relations.
18 seats were contested in the election with the Tilbury
Tilbury
Tilbury is a town in the borough of Thurrock, Essex, England. As a settlement it is of relatively recent existence, although it has important historical connections, being the location of a 16th century fort and an ancient cross-river ferry...
Riverside and Thurrock Park seat being a by-election
By-election
A by-election is an election held to fill a political office that has become vacant between regularly scheduled elections....
after the previous councillor
Councillor
A councillor or councilor is a member of a local government council, such as a city council.Often in the United States, the title is councilman or councilwoman.-United Kingdom:...
resigned. The Conservatives, Labour
Labour Party (UK)
The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...
and British National Party
British National Party
The British National Party is a British far-right political party formed as a splinter group from the National Front by John Tyndall in 1982...
contested all 18 seats except in East Tilbury where the Conservatives did not put up a candidate. There were also 8 Liberal Democrats and 2 other candidates.
Election results
The results saw the council stay under no overall control but with the British National Party gaining a seat. The Conservatives remained the largest party on the council after winning 10 of the seats contested as compared to 6 for Labour. The final seat was won by independentIndependent (politician)
In politics, an independent or non-party politician is an individual not affiliated to any political party. Independents may hold a centrist viewpoint between those of major political parties, a viewpoint more extreme than any major party, or they may have a viewpoint based on issues that they do...
Barry Palmer in East Tilbury.
While the Conservatives were still just short of an overall majority they remained in control of the council due to their existing agreement with the 2 independent councillor
Councillor
A councillor or councilor is a member of a local government council, such as a city council.Often in the United States, the title is councilman or councilwoman.-United Kingdom:...
s. Both main parties said they would not work with the new British National Party councillor, although she said she did not want to work with them anyway.
Following the election in March 2009, Terry Hipsey, the then Conservative leader of the council, defected from the Conservatives to Labour, leaving each of the major parties with 23 councillors.