Telford Conservative councillors elect new leader

Councillor Andrew Eade, who has held the role previously, was elected after Councillor Nigel Dugmore opted to stand down from the position.

Councillor Dugmore said he was stepping back to take on the role of deputy leader to allow him time to focus on his work commitments, which include running Donnington Vaccination Centre.

The election for the role of leader took place at the group's annual meeting.

Councillor Eade, who represents Lilleshall & Church Aston, praised his predecessor and said he would be focussed on challenging the council's Labour administration.

He said: "I would like to thank Councillor Nigel Dugmore for his time as leader of our group for the last few years, it has been a busy time for Nigel due to the amount of work commitments he has had, including running the Donnington Vaccination centre. Despite how busy he has been Nigel has done a fantastic job.

"I will now focus on highlighting how much better off the residents of Telford & Wrekin would be under a Conservative administration. Labour's reckless borrowing plans need to be cancelled, their planned borrowing of over £7,000 per household in the borough is a big mistake, and we will be making sure every resident understands the damage that Labour are doing to our council."

Responding to the comments about the council's finances, Ken Clarke, Telford & Wrekn Council's director of finance said: “Councils can only borrow money to fund capital projects. Net debt outstanding currently totals £233m but the council's assets are worth considerably more at £735m, giving net equity of over £500m; assets for the future generations of Telford and Wrekin residents.

“Telford & Wrekin Council has loans outstanding for different durations and at different interest rates reflecting interest rates, dependent on when the loan was taken out. The highest rate of interest paid is 9.375 per cent but this is on a loan taken out in 1969 with an outstanding balance of less than £5,000. The lowest rate of interest currently being paid is 0.04 per cent on a £5m loan. The council’s budget includes provision for repayment of principal on all loans.

“We must and do comply with national accounting requirements and Government rules on borrowing. As chief finance officer I consider the council’s budget to be robust.”