Weymouth and Portland Council election, 2010
Encyclopedia
The 2010 Weymouth and Portland Council election took place on 6 May 2010 to elect members of Weymouth and Portland
Borough
Council in Dorset
, 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
and 3 independents
. 36 candidates were standing for the 12 seats being contested with the Conservatives defending 7, Labour 2, independents 2 and Liberal Democrats 1.
West which had been previously held by independent Steven Flew before he stood down at the election. However the Conservatives lost another seat in Melcombe Regis
to the Liberal Democrats, with the winning candidate Ray Banham returning to the council on which he had previously served for 10 years. Ian James narrowly held Westham East ward
for the Conservatives after having defected from the Liberal Democrats in 2008, while his wife Christine James held Westham North for the Liberal Democrats.
Weymouth and Portland
Weymouth and Portland is a local government district and borough in Dorset, England. It consists of the resort of Weymouth and the Isle of Portland, and includes the areas of Wyke Regis, Preston, Melcombe Regis, Upwey, Broadwey, Southill, Chiswell, Castletown, Fortuneswell, Radipole, Nottington,...
Borough
Borough status in the United Kingdom
Borough status in the United Kingdom is granted by royal charter to local government districts in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. The status is purely honorary, and does not give any additional powers to the council or inhabitants of the district...
Council in Dorset
Dorset
Dorset , is a county in South West England on the English Channel coast. The county town is Dorchester which is situated in the south. The Hampshire towns of Bournemouth and Christchurch joined the county with the reorganisation of local government in 1974...
, 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...
18 - Liberal Democrat 11
- 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...
5 - 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
Background
Before the election the Conservatives had exactly half of the seats with 18, compared to 10 for the Liberal Democrats, 5 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...
and 3 independents
Independent (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...
. 36 candidates were standing for the 12 seats being contested with the Conservatives defending 7, Labour 2, independents 2 and Liberal Democrats 1.
Election result
The results saw the Conservatives remain as the largest party with 18 of the 36 seats but without a majority. They gained one seat in TophillTophill
Tophill is a gently sloping area of land on the Isle of Portland in Dorset, England. Rising from sea level at Portland Bill to near The Verne at its northern end, Tophill contains the villages of Easton, Weston, Southwell, the Grove and Wakeham....
West which had been previously held by independent Steven Flew before he stood down at the election. However the Conservatives lost another seat in Melcombe Regis
Melcombe Regis
Melcombe Regis is an area of Weymouth in Dorset, England.Situated on the north shore of Weymouth Harbour and originally part of the waste of Radipole, it seems only to have developed as a significant settlement and seaport in the 13th century...
to the Liberal Democrats, with the winning candidate Ray Banham returning to the council on which he had previously served for 10 years. Ian James narrowly held Westham East ward
Wards of the United Kingdom
A ward in the United Kingdom is an electoral district at sub-national level represented by one or more councillors. It is the primary unit of British administrative and electoral geography .-England:...
for the Conservatives after having defected from the Liberal Democrats in 2008, while his wife Christine James held Westham North for the Liberal Democrats.