Council leaders ousted during fiery debate

Councillors Lesley Rollings and Trevor Young have lost their positions as leaders of West Lindsey District Council

The leaders of West Lindsey District Council have been ousted after a fiery debate.

At a full council meeting earlier, members voted against leader councillor Trevor Young and deputy leader councillor Lesley Rollings after a motion said their "combative" leadership style and number of positions they held were making the authority dysfunctional.

According to the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS), members of their own Liberal Democrat (Lib Dems) group were understood to have joined with Conservatives and various Independent groups to force them from office.

Young said it was a "sad day", while Rollings said she was "disappointed" and predicted "chaos" on the horizon.

Twenty members supported the decision to remove both councillors, with only three against.

Young said in the 30 years he had been on the council this motion had brought the authority to its lowest depth.

The LDRS said it had been told unhappiness with the situation had been growing for more than a year.

Young had been in charge of West Lindsey District Council since the Lib Dems won control in 2023 and the move came less than two months after the leaders were reappointed in May.

The motions were brought by councillor Trevor Bridgewood (Consensus Independent) and was backed by the leader of the opposition, councillor Jackie Brockway (Conservative).

She said: "Their combative leadership style has caused concern across the council.

"I have challenged them over the excessive gathering of authority positions to themselves, rather than sharing them with their own and other groups.

"It is really important for the resilience and effectiveness of the council that the roles are shared, not gathered amongst two people."

'Car crash' prediction

As well as being leader and standing as the Lib Dem candidate for Greater Lincolnshire mayor, Young chairs two committees and sits on four more, according to the council's website.

Rollings is also the chair of a committee and vice chair of another.

Referring to Rollings, Young said: "I don't think we would find a harder working individual."

He said he predicted a "car crash" when the new leadership, which has not been decided, takes over.

Bill Cullen, interim head of paid service for West Lindsey District Council, said: "Following the outcome of today's council meeting and the subsequent change in political leadership, the council would like to reassure residents, businesses and partners that it remains very much business as usual."

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