REDDITCH Conservatives have taken all eight seats in the four divisions of the borough in another stunning victory for the party.
On the way borough council Leader Matt Dormer brushed aside the challenge of former Tory Juliet Brunner in Arrow Valley East while Salman Akbar removed Labour’s leader at County Hall, Robin Lunn, in Redditch North.
Elsewhere there were gains in Arrow Valley West were Labour’s Andy Fry was defeated.
Coun Dormer, flush with success after the borough election results said: “I’m the cat who’s got more cream today.
“But despite all the success I feel sorry for so many good people, people like Andy Fry who’s a decent man and it’s not how it should happen.
“But our record speaks for itself – we bucked the trend in 2018 and 2019 and once again the town has turned out for us and the onus is now on us to deliver.”
He acknowledged the impact of the ‘vaccine bounce’ before adding: “We pick good candidates who have already got a bit of community in them and we work with them to deliver and boy do they work hard.
“Having said that you cannot take away how the government has performed with the vaccine roll out and with Brexit.
“Even Boris Johnson sending a warship to Jersey this week to protect our fishermen, take away the wallpaper issue and that’s the kind of leadership the people of this country want.
“So all credit to him and his team, they are flying.”
On Coun Juliet Brunner who went independent after she wasn’t chosen to defend her Arrow Valley East seat for the Conservatives and who polled 820 votes, to his 2,545, he said: “Juliet obviously ran a good campaign and I take my hat off to her.
“Going in as an independent couldn’t have been easy and yet she got more votes than some political parties, so credit to her.”
Arrow Valley East:
Isabel Armstrong (Independent) – 328
Joe Baker (Labour) – 1,511
Juliet Brunner (Independent) – 820
Matt Dormer (Conservatives) – 2,545
Wanda King (Labour) – 1,248
Vicki Lees (Greens) – 285
Jo Monk (Conservatives) – 2,348
Andy Thompson (Liberal Democrats) – 313
Mark Tomes (Liberal Democrats) – 460
Simon Venables (Greens) – 206
Arrow Valley West:
Aled Evans (Conservatives) – 2,193
Andy Fry (Labour) – 1,633
David Gee (Liberal Democrats) – 223
Sharon Harvey (Labour) – 1,309
Gabby Hemming (Greens) – 309
Emma Marshall (Conservatives) – 1,963
Steve Sergent (Greens) – 237
Diane Thomas (Liberal Democrat) – 249
Redditch North:
Salman Akbar (Conservatives) – 2,625
Debbie Chance (Labour) – 1,789
Brandon Clayton (Conservatives) – 2,388
Robin Lunn (Labour) – 1,515
Tony Pitt (Liberal Democrats) – 269
Glen Theobold (Greens) – 371
Alistair Waugh (Greens) – 328
Ian Webster (Liberal Democrats) – 227
Redditch South:
Phil Berry (Labour) – 1,325
Claire Davies (Greens) – 553
Monica Fry (Labour) – 1,206
Pamela Gee (Liberal Democrats) – 321
John Marsh (Liberal Democrats) – 293
Lea Room (Greens) – 343
Mike Rouse (Conservatives) – 3,220
Craig Warhurst (Conservatives) – 3,042
