Leyland politician set to take over as the leader of South Ribble Borough Council

A veteran Leyland politician is set to take over as the leader of South Ribble Borough Council – just weeks after losing his seat on another local authority on which he served.

Labour’s Matthew Tomlinson is in line for the top job after current district leader Jacky Alty decided to step down after just under a year in the role.

Cllr Tomlinson had been hoping to take over the running of Lancashire County Council after the local elections earlier this month – but not only was his opposition group on the authority decimated after Reform UK swept to victory, he lost his own Leyland Central division, 24 years after first being elected to County Hall.

He said he was “humbled” when he was later approached by Cllr Alty, who told him that now he had more time on his hands, she felt he was “better placed” to lead South Ribble through forthcoming government-ordered changes to the council landscape in Lancashire.

Cllr Alty was elected South Ribble leader last July, replacing Paul Foster who became the area’s MP at the general election.

Cllr Tomlinson – who has sat on the borough council since 1999, initially representing the now defunct Golden Hill ward and, currently, the Broadfield seat  – has been South Ribble’s cabinet member for finance since Labour seized control of the authority from the Tories in 2019.

Speaking to the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) ahead of the meeting next Wednesday (21st May) where he will be proposed as leader, Cllr Tomlinson paid tribute to the woman now poised to become his predecessor.

“Jacky is a very thoughtful politician and very sincere – and she genuinely expressed the view that now that I had the capacity…to take on [the] role, that I would be the best person to lead us through the changes that are coming,” he said.

He added that he was “really keen” for Cllr Alty to remain on the cabinet – where she had previously been portfolio holder for licensing, social justice and equality and diversity – and that she had agreed to do so.   The new cabinet posts will be confirmed next week.

Cllr Tomlinson, who oversaw the renovation of Worden Hall as part of his cabinet role, said that in spite of the stinging defeat to Reform at the county council elections, his love of local politics had not been diminished.

“I really believe in local government – we have the opportunity to make people’s lives better and that’s why I’m involved in it,” he added.

Cllr Alty, who represents Farington East, said:  “It is my firm belief that the people of South Ribble are the beating heart of the borough and ensuring we do the best for them is the driver for all we do. Although I will no longer be leader of the council, my dedication will not wane in driving forward projects and initiatives which will be of benefit to all, with no one excluded or left behind.

“I want to thank all those people who have supported me during my leadership. Your kindness, insights and advice has been invaluable during my time – and I look forward to continuing to work with all of you to drive our ambitious plans forward.

“I am so delighted to propose Matthew as the next leader of South Ribble Borough Council. His experience, dedication and skill as local councillor in the borough is unrivalled – and I have no doubt the council will thrive under his leadership, if appointed.”

WHAT FUTURE FOR SOUTH RIBBLE?

South Ribble Borough Council – along with Lancashire’s 14 other main local authorities – is set to be wiped from the map as part of wholesale changes ordered by ministers.

The government has given the county until November to come up with plans to replace the existing ‘two-tier’ system – under which responsibility for local services is split between district authorities and the county council across most of Lancashire – with just a handful of standalone councils covering much larger areas.

Late last year, Cllr Alty expressed a preference for South Ribble to merge with Chorey and West Lancashire as part of those changes.  However, a council debate on the subject that was due to take place in March was deferred at the last minute.

Cllr Tomlinson says he now hopes that the discussion will happen before the summer once councillors of all political colours in the borough have been provided with the information to enable them to have a “sensible and reasonable” conversation about the best option for the borough.

However, he also stressed the need to concentrate on running an “effective and efficient council that delivers for the people of South Ribble” ahead of any changes, which would be unlikely to occur until 2028.

Cllr Tomlinson told an LDRS debate ahead of the county elections that his preference was for the creation of four new councils across Lancashire – a model that would accommodate a tie-up between South Ribble, Chorley and West Lancashire.

Speaking on Friday, he said past experience meant he was not entirely convinced the proposed shake-up would come to pass –  but said the challenge would be to keep councils small enough to make them relevant to the residents they serve, but sufficiently large to ensure money could be saved in the process.

“If you were planning a local government system, you wouldn’t start with [what we now have] – where one council is responsible for collecting waste and then hands it over to another council to deal with, and once council sweeps the streets clean, but is not responsible for pothole and pavement repairs.

“That being said, people do like the district councils far more than they like the county council – because [the latter] is just seen as too big and too remote. So the balancing act for the government is to get councils that are big enough to be efficient and do the jobs they are meant to do, while still maintaining an element of local representation.

“But I would not support a council with more than half a million people, I think that would just be too remote.

“The Labour government have made their views clear about what the structure of local government ought to look like – and we’ll be led by them.  But if it happens, we have to be clear that we’ve steered the direction of travel,” Cllr Tominson explained.

Ministers have previously said their preference is for new councils to have a minimum population size of 500,000 – but that they are prepared to be flexible in order to create authorities that make sense to local areas.

A local authority covering South Ribble, Chorley and West Lancashire would cover around 350,000 residents.