Torbay Council leader says 'rebels should face by-election test'

Duo say they can serve the bay better outside the Tory ranks

Torbay Council’s Tory leader has called on two of his former party colleagues to face by-elections after defecting from the Conservative ranks.

Rebels Katya Maddison and Patrick Joyce, who were voted on to the council as Conservatives in May, have resigned from the party ranks to set up their own Prosper Torbay group.

The decision means the Tories have lost their overall majority.

Cllr Maddison (Shiphay) and Cllr Joyce (Wellswood) said they felt they would be better able to serve the interests of Torbay residents by being outside the Conservative group.

They are calling on the Tory administration to focus on supporting local High Streets and tackling the problems of homelessness and housing.

Their statement said: “There’s a lot of good stuff going on in Torbay with devolution and big capital projects lining up, but if history has taught us anything it’s that the devil is in the detail, and we would encourage the administration to be focused on that too.

“We want to be free to challenge projects while they’re still being formulated so we can avoid the fiascos of the past.”

Council leader David Thomas (Con, Preston) said: “I am really disappointed that they don’t want to remain within the group. One thing is for certain – Katya, Patrick and I have not had a huge blazing row where we have all fallen out with each other.”

And, he said, there would be questions for the pair to answer from the people who elected them in May.

“Are they going to their communities for a by-election?” he asked. “I think they should.

“It was only five months ago that they stood and were elected on a Conservative ticket, and a lot of people will have been voting for a manifesto and a certain direction of travel.

“They stood on that manifesto, and yet in five short months they want to do something different.”

Cllr Thomas said the new administration’s focus on ‘delivering’ big projects across Torbay would have town centres and High Streets at their heart.

There is potentially around £200 million to be spent, with the council’s new regeneration partner having access to £100 million in investment and the £100 million we have from the government.

“The opportunities to do something are just coming on line now,” he added. “We are well aware of the problems in the town centres. We are not blind to them.”

The change shifts the balance of power on Torbay Council significantly. Up until today there were 19 Conservative councillors, 15 Liberal Democrats and two Independents, giving the Tories an overall majority of two.

However, with 17 Conservatives, 15 Liberal Democrats, two Independents and two Prosper Torbay councillors, the overall majority is gone.

It would now be possible in theory for the 19 non-Conservative councillors to launch a vote of no confidence in Cllr Thomas, but that seems highly unlikely.

“I’m very disappointed that they think they can do things better on their own,” said Cllr Thomas. “But I hope they will continue to support what we are looking to bring forward.”