Local elections 2023: Conservatives lose control of Brentwood Council

The Liberal Democrats on Brentwood Council hail a "fantastic result" after taking three seats from the Conservatives

The Conservatives have lost control of Brentwood Borough Council for the first time in eight years.

It was the first leadership change to be declared in England in this year's local elections.

The Tories, however, have kept control in Basildon, Braintree, Harlow and Thurrock.

Castle Point, Colchester, Rochford, Southend and Tendring remain hung councils with no party gaining overall control.

At a glance

• The Liberal Democrat leader on Brentwood Council hails a "fantastic result" after taking three seats from the Conservatives

• Brentwood Conservative MP Alex Burghart says losing control of the council is a "shame"

• "We've got to take it on the chin," says Thurrock MP Jackie Doyle-Price

Despite the Conservative hold in Thurrock, the party lost three seats, including those held by leader Mark Coxshall and former Tory cabinet member for finance Shane Hebb.

The Tories now hold a slim majority of just two councillors.

The backdrop to the election in Thurrock includes the authority being about £1.5bn in debt and having a new managing director commissioner appointed by the government.

Labour members celebrated as Thurrock Conservative leader Mark Coxshall lost his seat

At Brentwood, the Liberal Democrat leader David Kendall hailed a "fantastic result" after his group took three seats from the Conservatives, forcing the council from Conservative-controlled to being under no overall control.

"It's a time of change in Brentwood and we're really delighted," Mr Kendall said.

The Lib Dems now have the same number of seats in the borough as the Tories, and Mr Kendall said there would be discussions about who would lead a new administration.

Brentwood Conservative MP Alex Burghart said the result was a "shame" because "we've got some very good, very hard-working people on the council".

The Conservative majority in Thurrock narrowed to just two seats over opposition parties

John Kent, the Labour leader in Thurrock, told BBC Essex he was "really pleased" after gaining five extra councillors in the borough, adding: "The people of Thurrock have given their verdict on the Conservatives' catastrophic mismanagement of the council finances."

Thurrock Conservative MP Jackie Doyle-Price said she was not surprised by the results, but claimed the financial mismanagement extended beyond the Tory administration.

She added: "We've changed the leadership, we've got rid of the senior management, we've started doing the things that needed to be done to put the council back on track, but the electorate aren't impressed, so I think we need to take that on the chin."

Analysis:

Simon Dedman, BBC Essex political reporter

The Conservatives have had a drubbing tonight in Essex.

You saw it on the faces of their candidates.

They have lost their majority in Brentwood and the Lib Dems are set to run the borough with the support of Labour and an independent.

In Thurrock, the Conservatives' strong majority has been cut to just two, with the Tory MP Jackie Doyle-Price admitting "the electorate have given us a beating". Labour made gains in the district and could not have won a majority this year based on the seats that were up for grabs.

In true-blue Braintree the Tories had a wobble overnight, but clung on with a majority of just three - down from a previous 17 seats - with Labour making gains in urban areas.

There were reasons to be cheerful for the Tories elsewhere, however, including in Harlow, where they took a council seat off Labour. It's the third election in a row where the party has lost ground.

There was one by-election for Essex County Council for the Laindon Park and Fryerns Division after its Labour councillor stood down.

Patricia Reid took the seat for Labour again, leaving the council's political make-up unchanged.

In Chelmsford the picture is looking fairly static so far, but the Liberal Democrats have enjoyed moments of celebration

In Chelmsford, the Liberal Democrats have held on to control, where they claimed a landslide win in 2019.

The party has won enough seats to have a majority for another four years, with 33 seats a gain of two from four years ago.

Stephen Robinson, Liberal Democrat leader at Chelmsford City Council, said the local party was "delighted" to retain its majority

Stephen Robinson, the city council's Liberal Democrat leader, said councillors were "delighted" they had retained the local majority.

He said their priorities would be to provide more social housing and address environmental concerns by continuing to make the council carbon neutral.

"We are incredibly well set for the general election," he said.

"Our parliamentary candidate Marie Goldman has just won more votes for the Liberal Democrats than almost any other Liberal Democrat in Chelmsford's history."

The city's Conservative MP Vicky Ford said: "In my constituency we have won one seat from the Lib Dems and we've lost one seat to the Lib Dems.

"Given that across the country, people were predicting that this was not going to be a good day for the Conservatives - and in my area we seem to be reasonably flat - I think it's better than some would have expected."

The Conservatives lost seven seats on Maldon District Council - six to the Liberal Democrats and one to Labour.

It remains in no overall control, with 14 independent councillors the same number as previously.

The count took place in Saffron Walden

At Uttlesford District Council, Residents for Uttlesford retained its control with 22 seats, but lost four.

The Conservatives won 11 seats, an increase of seven. The Liberal Democrats lost three seats and now have four, while independent councillors have two.

In Epping Forest, the Conservatives remain in control of the district council, losing one seat. Only a third of the seats on the authority were up for grabs, with the Liberal Democrats winning three of the 18 available - a gain of two.

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