Thanks To Everyone Who Voted For Us

10.54.04am BST (GMT +0100) Sun 13th May 2007

Councillor John Whitehouse

Councillor John Whitehouse (Kenilworth Abbey), who co-ordinated the recent district and town council election campaign across the three Kenilworth wards, has written to the local media to thank voters for their support. He wrote:

"On behalf of all the Liberal Democrat candidates in the recent district and town council elections, I would like to thank everyone who voted for us in Kenilworth Abbey, Park Hill and St. John's wards. The exceptionally high levels of voter turnout in all three wards were very gratifying for all those who believe in the importance of a healthy local democracy.

In Abbey ward, we successfully defended our existing seats against the national and local swing to the Conservatives, but were unable to gain additional seats. Many congratulations to Councillors Ann Blacklock and Pat Ryan on being re-elected, especially as this will enable Pat to take up his role as Town Mayor over the coming year.

In Park Hill ward we were unable to withstand the damage done by the last minute defection of a councillor to the Conservatives, and very regrettably Councillors Doug Golby and Alison Tyler both lost their seats. I would like to pay tribute to Doug and Alison for their hard work and commitment during their time on the town council. Both were exceptionally able councillors, and their contributions on the council and on behalf of Park Hill residents will be sorely missed.

For Warwick District overall, the Liberal Democrats held all their nine seats successfully, but lost joint control of the council as the Conservatives gained seats at the expense of Labour and Independents. In Leamington the Liberal Democrats gained town council seats and now have an overall majority. It remains a remarkable position that even now, at the peak of the David Cameron "bubble" which will surely burst soon, there is not a single Conservative councillor in the whole of Leamington.

Residents often tell us that they don't really understand the difference between the three levels of local councils, and what each is responsible for. This is quite understandable because lines of responsibility are often blurred.

However, for the first time in a long while the situation is crystal clear for Kenilworth residents. The Conservatives are running all three councils - county, district and town - and therefore whatever goes wrong from now on is their sole responsibility!

As an active and engaged opposition the Liberal Democrats will hold the Conservatives to account to deliver on their promises - in council meetings, the media and in our Focus newsletters. With the support of so many Kenilworth voters on the 3rd May, we will bounce back from this temporary reverse and return even more strongly than before."