Telford and Wrekin Council leader appointed to national role

Shaun Davies has been council leader at Telford and Wrekin Council for six years

A council leader has been elected to a key national position on the Local Government Association (LGA).

Shaun Davies, from Telford and Wrekin Council, will be Labour's leader and senior vice chair at the association, which represents councils across England and Wales.

It means he will attend shadow cabinet meetings alongside his council work in Telford and Wrekin.

Mr Davies said he was "absolutely made up" to be elected to the role.

He said: "Local government has delivered and continues to deliver on behalf of our communities, despite the tough financial settlements, the pandemic and other challenges too.

"Councils can and do so much and we want to do more.

"In my role I'll also work cross party on the issues that face councils across England and Wales and push for greater investment and devolution to councils and communities."

The LGA is the national body for local authorities and represents them within national government.

Mr Davies received 96% of the votes from Labour groups in England and Wales.

The current chief executive, Mark Lloyd, congratulated him on his election.

"We're all looking forward to working very closely with you on the significant issues facing councils and communities in the months and years ahead," he said.