A Bolton Labour councillor has resigned from the party giving ‘no reason’ to her group leader.
The resignation of Coun Shamim Abdullah, who represents Rumworth on Bolton Council, was sensationally revealed during the council’s annual budget debate by Conservative council leader Martyn Cox, who told members ‘Labour has lost another councillor’.
Labour group leader Nick Peel said Coun Abdullah had ‘resigned as a Labour councillor to the Conservative Leader, rather than to me’ and had not given any reason to him for her departure.
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The shock resignation came as Labour attempted a budget amendment to try and allocate £1M to fund buying a plot of land in the Rumwarth ward for a site for a new high school.
Currently Haslam Park is the preferred site for the school and if that project went ahead much of the green space would be lost.
The Labour amendment, which was defeated, was intended to ‘save the park from destruction’.
Coun Peel, said: “Coun Abdullah resigned as a Labour councillor to the Conservative leader, rather than to me.
“She did this minutes before I stood up in council to move an amendment that would save Haslam Park, within her ward, from development.
“She had been included in all discussions about our plans to save the park and never indicated that she was against them.
“She has given me no reason for her resignation, so people will have to draw their own conclusions as to her motives.
“The Labour group is actually in a more cohesive and united position that it has been in for a long time.
“In politics, I recognise that there is a long game to play, so in the short term a resignation may look bad, but in the long term we will only become stronger.
“I am more than confident that this May and in the coming years, a new set of Labour councillors will be elected, bringing with them determination and drive for our future agenda.”
Coun Abdullah has held the seat since 2016, when she won a by-election.
Coun Abdullah did not respond to requests for comment.
