Labour once again won a majority at this year's local elections in South Tyneside but council leader Tracey Dixon said that she was disappointed that the party had lost three seats to the Green Party.
Gains by the Green Party were in Biddick and All Saints, Cleadon and East Boldon, and West Park mean that it is now the main opposition. It also has full control of two wards - Beacon and Bents and West Park - while they hold two of the three seats in Cleadon and East Boldon, with the other belonging to the council's only Conservative councillor.
That was the only movement on the night, with independent councillors holding onto Bede, Primrose and Westoe wards, Labour holds on 11 wards, and a Green Party hold in Beacon and Bents. Coun Tracey Dixon, council leader and representative of Whitburn and Marsden ward believes that tonight's performance shows that Labour are in a strong position for the next General Election despite the loss of three more seats to a party that had none in the borough until 2019.
Read more: Local elections 2023: All the results from South Tyneside Council as they are announced
Coun Dixon told ChronicleLive: "It's been a good night, we've held onto eleven seats. We're a little disappointed that we've lost three seats but we've lost those to the Green Party."
Coun Dixon believes that Greens have made gains as the environment is a key issue for many residents, but said that the council as a whole are leading some "fantastic" environmental initiatives.
She continued: "I do think that the environment is extremely at the forefront for lots of residents. We hear so much about climate change and environmental issues and it's now about how we as a Labour council get those strong green Labour messages across."
On what Labour needs to do in the North East to win people's votes ahead of the next General Election, Tracey said: "We need to keep banging the drum and getting those strong messages across of how much labour are working for the people and that Labour policies are spread out regionally so come the general election people can see what we're doing to deliver. We're leading on national agendas, green agendas, the cost of living, all those kinds of things."
In the lead up to the General Election, Tracey says that the council are also aiming to tackle the cost of living crisis, which is a "huge issue not just in North Tyneside but nationally". She finished: "As a council, we are here to support the most vulnerable, our residents, and our businesses and getting them through those challenging times, that's what we are doing."
While there was disappointment in the Labour Party, there was delight for the Greens, who have gone from not having a single seat in 2019 to having one sixth of the council's seats and now being the main opposition. David Francis, leader of South Tyneside Greens, held onto his seat in Beacon and Bents, and told ChronicleLive: "I'm relieved but also really excited about the growth of the Green group.
"Before 2019, there had never been a Green Party councillor in South Tyneside and now we have nine in a number of wards and to get to that, we have been taking seats from Labour and Conservatives."
Coun Francis said that each councillor will "get their teeth" into issues on a ward level, but as a borough the main focus would be taking a clear stance on climate and ecological issues. He added: "We want to make South Tyneside a better area for people by standing up against building on the green belt and protecting the local environment as much as the global one."
Shirley Ford was one of three newly elected Green party councillors, gaining her seat in Cleadon and East Boldon. She told ChronicleLive: "It’s such an honour to be elected, I’m going to work so hard to prove people they were right to put their trust in me.
"The people of Cleadon will have a councillor who isn't tied to voting how a central leadership is telling them to, they'll have someone who is really their ward councillor. I'll be representing everyone no matter how they voted and will stand up for really important issues, one of which protecting the green belt and green spaces."
Another new Green Party councillor was 26-year-old Jim Yare, who turned West Park fully Green. He said: "I'm incredibly proud of the work that the amazing West Park team has been doing and I'm incredibly grateful to the people of West Park for voting for me."
Thursday's elections mean that South Tyneside Council now has 38 Labour councillors, nine Green councillors, six independents, and one Conservative. Across South Tyneside, the total turnout was 31.2%, with 35,590 people casting their vote.
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