Shropshire Council former deputy leader speaks after losing seat
The former deputy leader of Shropshire Council conceded that he did not expect to see the Conservatives do as badly as they have in the local elections.
Ian Nellins, who was the portfolio holder for climate change, environment and transport, lost out to the Liberal Democrats’ Abdul Shamim.
“I’m disappointed, but not gutted,” said Mr Nellins.
“I always knew it was going to be close, but I didn’t realise how overwhelming it would be. If anything, I thought Reform would have split the vote a bit, but they’ve actually come in and made a biog input.
“I am disappoointed for the Conservative Group altogether because they’ve done a really good job in the last four years under very difficult circumstances, which I don’t think has been appreciated.
“I think this election has boiled down to national issues as opposed to local. Itr’s disappointing, but that’s democracy.
“People have voted for a new campaign. I wish them well, but I think they’ll realise the challenges will be difficult.
“I think the Lib Dems were strong here anyway, but Reform have put a dent in across the board. The Lib Dems have obviously made an impact north of the county because they have an MP.
“They did the campaign with her, and Reform had Nigel Farage. But they’ve campaigned on the bigger issues rather than the council ones.”
Mr Nellins, who runs a pub with his son, added that he would have liked to have seen through some projects, like the pyrolysis project in Ludlow, and the Shrewsbury Riverside redevelopment.
“I’ve found the last four years really interesting and it’s opened my eyes about things people don’t know about,” he said.
