The new Lib-Lab coalition running South Gloucestershire Council has been branded “inherently unstable” after it emerged either side could pull the plug with just one month’s notice – or even immediately. Opposition Conservatives say the partnership agreement, published in the last few days, “raises alarm bells” that it was created in an “atmosphere of mutual suspicion and distrust”.
Council leader Cllr Claire Young (Liberal Democrat, Frampton Cotterell) says her group and Labour have taken the time to establish a proper deal and build a good working relationship so they can “ensure a stable partnership which will work for everyone” in the district. The two parties have teamed up to run the authority after the Tories lost control of the council at last month’s local elections following eight years in power.
While the Conservatives remain the largest group in the chamber, they lost 10 of their 33 seats at the ballot box, while the Lib Dems were up three to 20 and Labour gained six and now has 17, plus one new independent. It means no single group has 31 councillors that would give them an overall majority, but unlike before the elections on May 4, the two former opposition parties now have enough between them.
