Middleton to have third election of the year following councillor’s removal

Middleton is set to have its third election of the year following the removal of a North Middleton councillor from his post.

Peter Allonby, the former ward representative for North Middleton, had not attended a council meeting for six consecutive months, meaning he was removed from his post. Mr Allonby was last elected into the post for the Middleton Independent Party back in 2022.

This marks a significant loss for the Middleton Independents, as Allonby’s departure leaves only one remaining party representative on the council.

The by-election to fill the vacant North Middleton seat will take place on Thursday 31 October.
 

Read more: Middleton faces by-election after MIP councillor loses seat following health issuesPublished: 19 September 2024

The day most commonly known for Halloween will mark the third time in 2024 that people in Middleton will go to the polls.

In May, there was a local election for seats on Rochdale Council and in the general election in July, Elsie Blundell was elected as the MP for Heywood & Middleton North.

This latest by-election is for a council seat, but things have already got heated with the Middleton Independents pointing the finger at Labour for getting their councillor removed from his post. They claim Labour blocked their motion to grant extended leave to Mr Allonby, which was due to ill health.

Lee Wolf, chair of the Middleton Independents Party, said: “The reason this by-election has been called is simple: the local Labour party refused to grant leave to the elected Middleton Independents party councillor, Peter Allonby.

“The council’s governance officer wrote a report asking for leave to be granted, however, the governance officer confirmed later that the local Labour leadership wouldn’t support the request.

“This leave was needed to allow Peter time to recover from life-saving heart surgery carried out in early September.

“Local Labour’s stance clearly differs when it’s one of their councillors. Notably, Labour North Middleton councillor Sara Rowbotham who was elected in May 2022. This two year absence was wholeheartedly supported by local Labour.”

Ms Rowbotham stepped down at the last election and is no longer a councillor. The local Labour group have responded to MIP’s claims by stating they failed to table this motion in time and explained this election is a matter of following the law.

A Labour comment on the matter read: “The law is very clear on this, an elected member must attend a meeting of the council at least once every six months. This is because the role of a councillor is to represent those who have elected them.

“Meetings of the council are where the decisions councillors are elected to make on your behalf are made, and if councillors are not present then they are not fulfilling that role. Peter Allonby last attended a council meeting on 14 March 2024.

“Peter or his party could have tabled a motion to any of the full council meetings on 20 March, 15 May or 17 July to apply for an exception to the six month law but he and the Middleton Independent Party failed to do so.

 

 

“A by-election will now be held to enable the residents of North Middleton to elect a councillor who will be there for them, and who will be their voice on the council, standing up for them at every opportunity, and especially at meetings of the council where decisions are made.”

The deadline for candidates to submit their nomination papers is 4pm on Friday 4 October.

What is the deadline to register to vote?

Residents of the North Middleton ward have to until 11.59pm on Tuesday 15 October 2024 to register to vote. You’ll need to be aged 16 or over in England to register to vote (but you can’t vote until you’re 18 years old). You must also be either a British citizen, an Irish or EU citizen living in the UK, a Commonwealth citizen with permission to stay in the UK, or a citizen of another country living in Scotland or Wales who has permission to enter or stay in the UK.

It takes just five minutes to register online at www.gov.uk/register-to-vote.

Applications, amendments or cancellations of postal votes and amendments or cancellations of proxy votes must reach the Electoral Registration Officer at Number One Riverside, Smith Street, Rochdale OL16 1XU by 5pm on Wednesday 16 October. For more information visit: www.rochdale.gov.uk/elections-voting

To find out whether you live in the North Middleton ward, enter your postcode here or view a map of the North Middleton ward here.

George Lythgoe, Local Democracy Reporter