Conservatives take control of Peterborough City Council as UKIP suffers disappointing evening

The Conservatives have taken control of Peterborough City Council after a disappointing night for UKIP which lost two of its four seats.
Local elections 2016 at the Arena.Local elections 2016 at the Arena.
Local elections 2016 at the Arena.

The Conservatives had been the largest party on the council but can now boast a majority after taking 31 of 60 seats.

The Liberal Democrats also enjoyed a successful evening, going from four to seven councillors, while Labour went from 12 to 14.

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The Werrington First group and Liberal Party kept three councillors while the Green Party failed to secure its first ever seat on the city council.

With Charles Swift not standing for re-election, Keith Sharp switching to the Liberals and David Harrington losing his seat, it means a loss in the number of independents on the council.

Last night’s election (Thursday, May 5) was the first since boundary changes came into force.

The Conservatives started well by winning 20 of the first 24 seats declared, but they only secured their majority on the final ward, when Mayor of Peterborough John Peach was re-elected as a member for Park by the slim margin of 10 votes ahead of his party colleague Arfan Khan.

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The big result of the evening was the return of former council leader Marco Cereste who was one of three Conservatives elected onto Hampton Vale.

The biggest shock was the departure of cabinet member Nigel North.

The atmosphere during the evening was mostly cordial, although there were a few boos and loud applause and celebrations greeted Labour winning all three seats on Central Ward.

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