1998 Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council election

The 1998 Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council election took place on 7 May 1998 to elect members of Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council in the West Midlands, England. One third of the council was up for election and the council stayed under no overall control.^[1]^[2]^[3]

Map of the results for the 1998 Solihull council election.

Campaign

Before the election the Conservative party held 17 seats, compared to 16 for Labour and 12 Liberal Democrats.^[4] However the council was run by the Labour party who governed with an agreement with the Liberal Democrats.^[4] With the split in seats between the parties the council was expected to remain without any party having a majority with Labour defending 6 seats, compared to 5 for the Conservatives and 4 for the Liberal Democrats.^[5] Meanwhile, the independent candidates who were defending a seat in Shirley South and 2 seats in Shirley West ward were expected to come under pressure.^[4] During the campaign another independent councillor Trevor Eames, who was not defending a seat in the election, resigned from the council after being jailed for 7 years causing a by-election to be held later in the summer.^[6]

Election result

The results saw all 3 independents who were defending seats defeated, reducing the number of Independent Ratepayers on the council to 2.^[7] Labour gained 1 seat from the independents in Shirley West, while the Conservative took the other 2 in Shirley South and Shirley West.^[7]^[8] The Conservatives also won a seat from the Liberal Democrats in Packwood ward, with the former leader of the council Ken Meeson being returned to the council.^[7] Overall turnout in the election was 29%, varying between a high of 40% and a low of 15% in Smithswood ward.^[9]

Following the election the Conservatives elected a new group leader, Ted Richards, after the previous leader Ron Herd stepped down.^[10] However, despite holding 20 seats, compared to 17 for Labour and 11 for the Liberal Democrats, the Conservatives remained in opposition, with Labour running the council with support from the Liberal Democrats.^[11]

Solihull Local Election Result 1998^[12]
	Seats	Gains	Losses	Net gain/loss	Seats %	Votes %	Votes	+/−
Conservative	8	3	0	+3	44.4	45.0	20,883	+7.9%
Labour	7	1	0	+1	38.9	25.4	11,809	-1.5%
Liberal Democrats	3	0	1	-1	16.7	23.3	10,831	-2.4%
Independent Ratepayers & Residents	0	0	2	-2	0.0	4.6	2,132	-3.4%
Independent	0	0	1	-1	0.0	1.7	767	+1.2%

This result had the following consequences for the total number of seats on the council after the elections :^[1]^[8]

Party		Previous council	New council
	Conservatives	17	20
	Labour	16	17
	Liberal Democrat	12	11
	Independent Ratepayers & Residents	5	3
	Independent	1	0
Total		51	51
Working majority		-17	-11

Ward results

Bickenhill^[2]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	James Ryan	2,036	58.5	+21.4
	Conservative	Robert Sleigh	1,278	36.7	−11.6
	Liberal Democrats	D. Moore	167	4.8	−1.8
Majority			758	21.8	+10.6
Turnout			3,481	35.3	+0.7
	Labour hold		Swing	+16.5

Castle Bromwich^[2]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Beryll Kellie	1,717	62.1	+2.4
	Labour	Ann Wood	799	28.9	−2.5
	Liberal Democrats	John Knight	251	9.1	+0.1
Majority			918	33.2	+5.0
Turnout			2,767	29.5	−8.1
	Conservative hold		Swing	+2.5

Chelmsley Wood^[2]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Robert Reed	883	69.6	−3.6
	Conservative	Graham Juniper	280	22.1	+3.2
	Liberal Democrats	Olive Hogg	105	8.3	+0.4
Majority			603	47.6	−6.8
Turnout			1,268	16.6	−5.2
	Labour hold		Swing	-3.4

Elmdon^[2]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Sheila Brookes	1,431	51.0	−4.0
	Conservative	John Bramham	1,153	41.1	+4.9
	Liberal Democrats	Barbara Harber	221	7.9	−1.0
Majority			278	9.9	−8.9
Turnout			2,805	36.1	−7.4
	Labour hold		Swing	-4.4

Fordbridge^[2]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Arthur Harper	618	68.4	−2.2
	Conservative	Neil Archer	209	23.1	+5.8
	Liberal Democrats	Bernard Wright	77	8.5	+1.5
Majority			409	45.2	−8.0
Turnout			904	14.4	−6.6
	Labour hold		Swing	-4.0

Kingshurst^[2]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Jeffrey Potts	526	44.4	−20.9
	Independent Residents	Brian Carter	383	32.3	+32.3
	Conservative	D. Cleghorn	227	19.1	−7.0
	Liberal Democrats	Christopher Hayes	50	4.2	−4.4
Majority			143	12.1	−27.1
Turnout			1,186	20.9	−5.0
	Labour hold		Swing	-26.6

Knowle^[2]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Diana Holl-Allen	1,792	62.3	−1.4
	Labour	David George	635	22.1	+9.3
	Liberal Democrats	Brenda Chapple	448	15.6	−7.9
Majority			1,157	40.2	−0.1
Turnout			2,875	32.4	−5.0
	Conservative hold		Swing	-5.3

Lyndon^[2]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal Democrats	Norman Chapple	1,331	56.4	−1.6
	Conservative	Neill Watts	677	28.7	+6.3
	Labour	John Kimberley	351	14.9	−4.6
Majority			654	27.7	−7.9
Turnout			2,359	30.3	−7.1
	Conservative hold		Swing	-3.9

Meriden^[2]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Peter Lea	1,990	68.9	+31.0
	Labour	Kenneth Harrop	551	19.1	−3.9
	Liberal Democrats	Richard Morris	347	12.0	−0.6
Majority			1,439	49.8	+38.5
Turnout			2,888	32.6	−8.6
	Conservative hold		Swing	+17.4

Olton^[2]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal Democrats	John Windmill	1,710	51.9	−0.9
	Conservative	Donald Jones	1,145	34.8	−5.1
	Labour	Donald Bargery	283	8.6	+1.3
	Independent Ratepayers	David Bayliss	156	4.7	+4.7
Majority			565	17.1	+4.2
Turnout			3,294	36.4	−6.9
	Liberal Democrats hold		Swing	+2.1

Packwood^[2]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Kenneth Meeson	2,119	51.7	+5.2
	Liberal Democrats	Peter Lee	1,783	43.5	−4.8
	Labour	Frederick Nash	199	4.9	−0.4
Majority			336	8.2	+6.4
Turnout			4,101	40.0	−3.9
	Conservative gain from Liberal Democrats		Swing	+5.0

Shirley East^[2]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal Democrats	Michael Southcombe	1,547	47.7	−2.0
	Conservative	Susan Rosten	1,240	38.2	+1.3
	Labour	James Burman	321	9.9	−3.5
	Independent Ratepayers	Robert Gill	135	4.2	+4.2
Majority			307	9.5	−3.3
Turnout			3,243	35.1	−6.8
	Liberal Democrats hold		Swing	-1.6

Shirley South^[2]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	David Evans	1,444	40.5	+40.5
	Independent Ratepayers	Richard Jackson	1,114	31.3	−30.3
	Labour	Bernard McElholm	683	19.2	−3.8
	Liberal Democrats	Eric Widger	323	9.1	−6.4
Majority			330	9.3	−29.4
Turnout			3,564	27.1	−2.9
	Conservative gain from Independent Ratepayers		Swing	+35.4

Shirley West^[2]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Richard Lewis	1,040	32.7	+32.7
	Labour	Peter Metcalfe	844	26.5	+0.1
	Conservative	Stuart Davis	822
	Independent	Brenda Otton	767	24.1	+24.1
	Independent	Jean Duddy	569
	Labour	Marcus Brain	541
	Independent Ratepayers	John Rogers	344	10.8	−52.0
	Liberal Democrats	Linda Whitlock	189	5.9	−4.9
Majority			196	6.2	−30.3
Turnout			3,184	29.6	−2.5
	Conservative gain from Independent		Swing	+16.2
	Labour gain from Independent Ratepayers		Swing

Silhill^[2]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Sheila Pittaway	1,704	47.4	−0.5
	Liberal Democrats	David Puckering	1,504	41.8	+4.0
	Labour	Richard Sumner	389	10.8	−3.4
Majority			200	5.6	−4.5
Turnout			3,597	36.6	−4.5
	Conservative hold		Swing	-2.2

Smith's Wood^[2]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Hugh Hendry	861	70.1	−3.8
	Conservative	Timothy Vernon	261	21.3	+3.8
	Liberal Democrats	Jennifer Wright	106	8.6	−0.1
Majority			600	48.9	−7.6
Turnout			1,228	15.3	−7.3
	Labour hold		Swing	-3.8

St. Alphege^[2]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Kathleen Wild	2,607	70.9	+7.3
	Liberal Democrats	J. Herbert	672	18.3	−5.4
	Labour	Arthur Brill	399	10.8	−1.9
Majority			1,935	52.6	+12.7
Turnout			3,678	33.1	−5.4
	Conservative hold		Swing	+6.3

By-elections between 1998 and 1999

Shirley South by-election 16 July 1998^[13]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	James Boy	1,070	44.8	+4.3
	Independent Ratepayer	John Rogers	612	25.6	−5.7
	Labour	Bernard McElholm	437	18.3	−0.9
	Liberal Democrats	Eric Widger	176	7.4	−1.7
	Democratic Reform Association	Brenda Otton	92	3.8	+3.8
Majority			458	19.2	+9.9
Turnout			2,387	17.7	−9.4
	Conservative gain from Independent Ratepayers		Swing	+5.0

References

^ ^a ^b "Policy and politics: Local Elections: Analysis: Council poll results". The Guardian. 9 May 1998. p. 16.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j ^k ^l ^m ⁿ ^o ^p ^q ^r "Solihull M. B. C. Election Results Sheet, 7 May 1998", Solihull M.B.C.(1998).
^ "Vote 2012: Solihull". BBC News Online. Retrieved 26 January 2013.
^ ^a ^b ^c "Shirley in spotlight". Birmingham Mail. 7 April 1998. p. 25.
^ Harrison, Stephen (1 May 1998). "Tories could unseat Labour at Solihull Voters across the West Midlands go to the polls in local elections next Thursday. Today, Local Government Correspondent Stephen Harrison looks at the fight for votes in Solihull and Coventry". Birmingham Post. p. 4.
^ Swingler, Steve (21 April 1998). "Eames: No appeal over verdict". Birmingham Mail. p. 13.
^ ^a ^b ^c Swingler, Steve (8 May 1998). "Backlash hits independents". Birmingham Mail. p. 7.
^ ^a ^b Swingler, Steve (8 May 1998). "Damning verdict for Independents after Eames scandal". Birmingham Mail. p. 3.
^ Gray, Chris (9 May 1998). "Voters and politicians are polls apart People once died to be able to vote. Chris Gray wonders why now they cannot even be bothered to walk to a polling booth". Birmingham Post. p. 61.
^ Ilyas, Mohammed (9 May 1998). "New leader to help Tories reclaim borough". Birmingham Post. p. 4.
^ "Tories look on bright side". Birmingham Mail. 11 May 1998. p. 14.
^ "Local Elections results". The Times. 9 May 1998. p. 46.
^ Swingler, Steve (17 July 1998). "Comeback for Otton ends in failure". Birmingham Post. p. 3.

[policy-1] "Policy and politics: Local Elections: Analysis: Council poll results". The Guardian. 9 May 1998. p. 16.

[results-2] ^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j ^k ^l ^m ⁿ ^o ^p ^q ^r "Solihull M. B. C. Election Results Sheet, 7 May 1998", Solihull M.B.C.(1998).

[3] "Vote 2012: Solihull". BBC News Online. Retrieved 26 January 2013.

[shirley-4] "Shirley in spotlight". Birmingham Mail. 7 April 1998. p. 25.

[unseat-5] Harrison, Stephen (1 May 1998). "Tories could unseat Labour at Solihull Voters across the West Midlands go to the polls in local elections next Thursday. Today, Local Government Correspondent Stephen Harrison looks at the fight for votes in Solihull and Coventry". Birmingham Post. p. 4.

[verdict-6] Swingler, Steve (21 April 1998). "Eames: No appeal over verdict". Birmingham Mail. p. 13.

[backlash-7] Swingler, Steve (8 May 1998). "Backlash hits independents". Birmingham Mail. p. 7.

[damning-8] Swingler, Steve (8 May 1998). "Damning verdict for Independents after Eames scandal". Birmingham Mail. p. 3.

[apart-9] Gray, Chris (9 May 1998). "Voters and politicians are polls apart People once died to be able to vote. Chris Gray wonders why now they cannot even be bothered to walk to a polling booth". Birmingham Post. p. 61.

[reclaim-10] Ilyas, Mohammed (9 May 1998). "New leader to help Tories reclaim borough". Birmingham Post. p. 4.

[bright-11] "Tories look on bright side". Birmingham Mail. 11 May 1998. p. 14.

[local-12] "Local Elections results". The Times. 9 May 1998. p. 46.

[comeback-13] Swingler, Steve (17 July 1998). "Comeback for Otton ends in failure". Birmingham Post. p. 3.

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