Peter Wexham elected as new Leigh Town Council councillor

Peter Wexham, who stood as an Independent Leigh resident, was elected as the new councillor for Elms ward at Leigh Town Council.

The former Lib Dem Southend councillor won the election by just one vote with 208 votes to independent candidate Cate Willoughby’s 207 votes.

Former town council chairman, Keith Evans, also independent, was in third place with 55 votes.

The election was triggered by the resignation of Tory Mark Flewitt after which three other Tory town councillors - Owen Cartey, Anne Robinson, and Murat Agdeve - also quit.

Mr Wexham has taken the seat following Mr Flewitt’s resignation, with by-elections for the other seats yet to be held.

Mr Wexham hopes to use his experience to get the council back on track after a “chaotic” year.

He said: “I am pleased to have won it, but Cate did put up a good fight too, with only one vote in it, where there had to be a recount. The last year has been chaos. This now gives me a chance to sort out what is going on.”

Mr Wexham said he wanted to “bring back transparency” to the council.

He added: “My main focus is to tackle the secrecy that goes on, everything is inwards, rather than outwards for the residents and visitors to Leigh. People have not been honest about what is going on, with staff, and what they are trying to achieve. Every time questions are asked, you don’t get answer. So, I want to bring back transparency, and an open approach to Leigh Town Council. I have got enough knowledge and experience to drive that forward.”

The council has suffered a series of controversies since the Tories took over last year including the suspension and dismissal of the town clerk and claims of secrecy.

The Tories still have a narrow majority on the council with seven councillors to the six independents.

It means, if the Tories do not win any of the subsequent by elections they face losing control of the council.