Voting is under way in the South Portslade by-election on a freezing January morning, with relatively modest turnout so far at polling stations.
The by-election was called after the resignation of long-serving Labour councillor Les Hamilton, 82, who had served on the council and its predecessor councils for more than 50 years.
Seven candidates are standing and the winner will become one of the 54 councillors on Brighton and Hove City Council.
Votes are due to be counted at Hove Town Hall tomorrow (Friday 12 January), with the prospect of a low turnout making it likely that the exercise should not take too long.
Polling stations are open from 7am to 10pm at St Nicolas Parish Centre, next to the church, in South Street, at Portslade Town Hall, in Victoria Road, and at the Scouts hut, in the south west corner of Vale Park.
Voters turning up at a polling station now need photo ID such as a passport or driving licence. To find out what forms of identification are accepted, click here.
The requirement for photo ID, which was brought in last year, is expected either to reduce turnout or spur people to vote.
Voting by post does not usually require photo ID, only the disclosure of a voter’s national insurance number.
The seven candidates are
- Danny John Booth – Green Party
- Benjamin James Franks – Conservative Party
- Jamie Rutherford Gillespie – Independent
- Josh Guilmant – Labour Party
- David Timothy Maples – Trade Unionist and Socialist Coalition
- Georgia Arabella McKinley Fitch – Democratic Liberation Party
- Kenneth Lloyd Rist – Liberal Democrats
They were each sent questions submitted by readers. To read their answers, click on their names.
For voters hoping to elect a candidate who lives locally, only two have disclosed their address – Georgia McKinley Fitch, of Hallyburton Road, Hove, and Ken Rist, of Fairfield Gardens, Portslade.
Benjamin Franks said that he has lived in the ward for many years and went to St Peter’s Community School which the council wants to close.
A decision on the school’s closure is due to be taken within weeks and has been one of the focal points of the by-election.
Labour topped the poll in South Portslade at the local elections last May, with both sitting councillors returned for the ward’s two seats.
- Les Hamilton (Labour) 1,767
- Alan Robins (Labour) 1,589
- Steve Harmer-Strange (Conservative) 365
- Sally Joanna Cranfield (Green) 330
- Aijuan Wang (Conservative) 291
- Ken Rist (Liberal Democrat) 251
- Danny Booth (Green) 216
- Helen Patricia Dear (Independent) 204
The council has 54 seats and the current breakdown is 35 Labour councillors, seven Greens, six Conservatives, two Brighton and Hove Independents and a separate Independent councillor, Peter Atkinson.
Two councillors who were elected on the Labour slate at the local elections last May are no longer part of the Labour group and are listed as Independents on the council website.
£13m for Valley Gardens 3, £13m for Kingsway to the Sea, £13.4m for Beryl bike scheme, Untold millions for Western Road disimprovements including all the road repairs needed to surrounding roads damaged by overweight hybrid buses and lorries but no £203k pa to keep St Peter’s School open? I trust the people of Portslade use today as an opportunity to tell Labour and the Greens exactly what they think of their diabolical spending priorities. Projects are not wholly government-funded (also our money). A third or more of each vanity project is taken from local taxpayers without our consent.
The schools budget comes via a specific government grant and the council can’t just top it up from other funds,
So to give this school £200k would mean it being taken away from other schools as the government grant is based on the number of pupils plus an allowance in the range of 10% to allow for some flexibility on excess places.
Unfortunately there are more excess school places than there are pupils plus that allowance which means school closures and rationalisations need to take place to keep the budget balances.
None of the council part of the funding of those schemes you mention can be used to support the schools budget.
As to “A third or more of each vanity project is taken from local taxpayers without our consent” we elect councillors to make such decisions. We can’t have a referendum on every scheme in the city to approve funding (or not).
Not true – they also balance books using the dosh from taxpayers. I know that because their co-chair confirmed that and you can also look it up. Should they be doing this now during a cost-of-living crisis whilst claiming they may go bankrupt? No. Should they keep to their party pledges made 6 months ago? Yes.
Vote for independent councillors
Vote for accountability not dogma
Independent candidates have less accountability then ANY other party.
Accountability to those that put them there without having to follow party lines. Party politics has nothing to do with running a city. A city is a business. And this one is going bust, despite having one of the highest council tax levels in the UK
Labour managed to break party pledges within 5 months. People voted for them to “keep schools open” and “increase preschool provision”, and they refuse to acknowledge their mistakes. Now I see they want us to believe they will invest in Early Years if we vote for them at the GE? They can’t even get it right at council-level elections. Red tory liars. All they want is another bum on the seat in the council so they can be whipped into line. Their candidate doesn’t even live or work here. Tried his luck elsewhere before, didn’t win, and is now trying here. You have to be really silly to not see through this. Let’s hope the electorate remember and also votes with our 117 year old school in mind, St Peter’s.