Shropshire set to go to the polls in election that promises huge changes - whoever wins
Shropshire Council residents will tomorrow (May 1) go to the polls in an election promising a huge shakeup at county hall - whichever party wins.
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The results should be known by Friday evening - with 74 councillors to be elected across 72 divisions.
The election comes as Shropshire Council, like councils and local government across the country, has faced some of its most testing times in recent years.
The authority has been led by the Conservatives since its creation in 2009 - although defections left its majority on a knife-edge earlier this year.
We already know that a host of Shropshire's big-name Tories will not be returning, no matter how the public vote on Thursday.
Council leader Lezley Picton announced her intention to step down prior to the election - a decision that followed a testing period navigating the authority through major financial challenges, and leading a host of some of the council's most ambitious and controversial projects.
That means that whichever party takes control on Friday, Shropshire is guaranteed to have a new council leader - with a host of pressing issues on their plate.
Councillor Picton has been joined in confirming her departure by Tory cabinet mainstay Councillor Dean Carroll, former cabinet member and deputy leader Councillor Steve Charmley, cabinet members Kirstie Hurst-Knight and Cecilia Motley as well as fellow Conservatives Nicholas Bardsley, Gerald Dakin, Paul Gill, Claire Wild, and Brian Williams.
A number of other prominent councillors will not be returning, including Labour's current Shrewsbury MP Julia Buckley, and her party colleagues Ted Clarke and Tony Parsons.
The opposition Lib Dem group is meanwhile losing Nat Green, Tracey and Richard Huffer, and Mary Davies.
Notable independents Robert Tindall and Ed Towers are also standing down.
The dynamics for this year's election promise to be wildly different to 2021 - not least because that election took place in the midst of the Covid-19 pandemic.
The rise of Reform has thrown a major unknown into the proceedings.
The party's mainstream breakthrough in last year's general election has been followed by a major push ahead of the local elections across the country.
In Shropshire, Nigel Farage's party is putting candidates up in every ward for the first time.
That coupled with the creation of the New 'Shropshire First' group, which is fielding nine candidates, promises a host of different variables which didn't exist four years ago.
Labour and the Lib Dems both expect to make headway after a testing period for the ruling Conservatives, but while many expect Reform to predominantly impact the Tories, it's a brave person who predicts that political upstarts will not pull support from across the political spectrum.
Whatever happens, the ballot will have huge implications for the future of Shropshire Council with the incoming administration likely to have little time to settle before the serious business begins.
The most obvious pressing issue will be what happens with Shrewsbury's North West Relief Road. The ongoing saga surrounding the controversial road project has dominated council proceedings for the last four years, with opposition groups eventually lining up against the Conservatives to pledge that they would scrap the plan if they take power.
That conviction would likely be tested early on if there is a new party in charge, with the financial reality of cancelling the road - and the consequences for an already cash-strapped authority - almost certainly set to shape the decision.
For their part the Conservatives have made their position clear - if you want the road built, vote Conservative.
Other major issues are the ongoing financial difficulties facing the council, decisions over future devolution deals and whether the authority eventually comes under a regional mayor, as well as large multi-million pound developments such as the Riverside in Shrewsbury.
All those come as the new council will have to wrestle with the consequences of its local plan being thrown out - alongside a huge increase in the Labour Government's house building targets for the area.
Whatever happens on Thursday, the next four years are likely to be just as eventful as the last four.
