REFORM has comfortably gained its first councillor in Greater Manchester as Labour lost its safest seat in Tameside on a historic night.
In a shock result, Allan Hopwood was elected in the Longdendale ward with a majority of 422 votes – receiving 911 of the 1,965 votes cast.
Labour’s Francesca Coates came second with 489, while Kieron Wild of the Conservatives polled third with 242 – after securing five more votes than Amanda Hickling of the Green Party. Independent candidate Emma Leyla got 76 votes.
The turnout was a meagre 20.1 per cent, which was lower than the 27 per cent that the Longdendale ward – which covers Hollingworth, Broadbottom, Hattersley and Mottram – received in 2024.
The by-election was called after the resignation from the Labour Party and Tameside Council of former deputy leader and finance boss Jacqueline North, who was elected in 2023 with a majority of 787.
As revealed by the Correspondent, she quit in February, citing fundamental disagreements with her party and a perceived inability to affect change within the next two years.
‘People are living in fear of what the council has planned next’
There was a loud cheer from the Reform group when the result – which reflects the strong surge in support in recent times for the right-wing populist party led by Nigel Farage – was announced at around 11.30pm.
Mr Hopwood joins Jacqueline Owen (Labour) and Gary Ferguson (Independent) – who recently resigned from Labour in protest at the party’s welfare cut proposals – in representing Longdendale on Tameside Council.
The newly-elected councillor told the Correspondent that his priority will be holding the local authority to account to ensure taxpayers money is being well spent.
“I think some of the Labour members are feeling a bit of heat from residents when they are not performing as perhaps they should,” Mr Hopwood said. “People are disenfranchised and have got to the point where they are desperate for change. I’ve found that talking to people when I’ve been going around.
“Overall, the cost of living is what is affecting most people and the council tax rise. People are living in fear of what the council has got planned next.
“My first priority will be to hold the council accountable for their dealings in terms of what money they spend, what it gets spent on, and the feasibility of it. We’ve seen things get started and not finished. We want to know the money collected in the borough is being used in the correct manner.
“I want to be a councillor that knows the needs of everybody – from business people to farmers and people living on the estates. I’ve lived in all the different areas throughout my life, I’ve been in many different situations and I’ve gained a lot of life experience from that.”
‘This is just the first domino’
Mr Hopwood’s agent Robert Barrowcliffe – who stood as Reform’s candidate in Ashton-under-Lyne at last year’s General Election – believes the result is “the start of things to come” in Tameside.
“To be honest, the best man won,” he said. “It’s credit to Allan and the team around him. I’m proud he’s the first Reform candidate to win a council election in Greater Manchester. This is the start of things to come in Tameside, this is just the first domino. We’ll do right by the people of this borough.
“Allan will be very active, engaging with his ward constituents. He’ll be a great man and very accessible. Obviously we don’t have a majority on Tameside Council but as a solo councillor, he’ll do a good job and hold them to account.
“You’ve got to knock on those doors and introduce yourself to the people – Allan has done that in a short space of time. It shows he connects with people and I couldn’t be prouder of the work he’s put in. This is a sign of many more things to come.”
‘We will reflect on this and come back stronger’
As ballot papers were counted at Hattersley Library on Thursday evening, it quickly became apparent that it wasn’t to be Labour’s night. The Labour group huddled away from the main action, deep in discussion, while other parties were at the tables counting ballots.
Earlier on polling day, Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds – whose Stalybridge and Hyde constituency includes Longdendale – was out campaigning and the MP posted on Facebook suggesting that national polls indicated it would be a two-way battle between Labour and Reform.
Tameside Council leader Councillor Eleanor Wills felt the result was “indicative of a really challenging climate at the minute” but that there were numerous factors at play which led to the outcome.
“I’m really upset with the result because Fran would have been an absolutely amazing councillor for Longdendale and I feel like Longdendale have missed out on a great councillor,” she told the Correspondent.
“If I’m perfectly honest, I think it’s indicative of a really challenging climate at the minute and I think that myself as leader of our Labour group needs to take stock and reflect what people within Longdendale have felt and reflected. We need to go and have a look at how we communicate to the residents of Tameside – the things we are delivering for them because perhaps some of that isn’t translating on a local level. That’s really important to me that they understand the things we are doing and how that positively impacts their lives.
“We’ve had quite a few national stories that have transpired that people have found unpalatable that have affected their lives potentially and equally we have had a bit of a tumultuous time in Tameside. Also there’s the unpredictability of a by-election, the turnout and confusion with messaging around county council elections on May 1 – there are many different factors for the result. But we will reflect on this and come back stronger.”
Francesca Coates – who came within 200 votes of being elected in Stalybridge South in 2023 – said it had been “really positive on the doorsteps” but admitted this campaign had been “a little more hostile” than she had previously experienced.
“I think that might just have been because of the different parties standing,” she added. “I’m used to quite a positive campaign and I’m quite a positive person myself. I think some of the international politics has been quite difficult this time – I’ve actually not had to talk about international politics on the doors in the past. This time [Donald] Trump has come up.”
‘We need to look at doing something different’
Amanda Hickling said she put her hat into the ring because she felt a need to “do local politics better” and believes the Green Party are not just committed to environmental issues.
“People need a choice and they don’t always realise there are other choices aside from the main parties,” she said. “I think for us it’s about getting the message across – we look at different issues but obviously we are a party of the people and we want people to have better lives. I don’t think people realise those policies are there as well, they just think the Green Party is all about the environment.
“I think it’s about making a difference in a positive way. A lot of this area is very set in its ways – it’s had a Labour council for a very long time and we need to look at doing something different.”
Kieron Wild admitted that some Labour and Conservative voters had indicated on the doorsteps that they would vote for Reform, while there was particular unhappiness with how the Labour administration has run the borough.
“There has been complacency in the Labour Party – they have been in power in Tameside for over 40 years and they have taken people for granted,” the Conservative candidate opined.
“We [the Conservatives] have some good councillors in Tameside, we just need more seats because we can oppose and question things. But when we’re small, it’s difficult against the masses of Labour. I think historically it’s been a Labour area but if we can expose their inadequacies, hopefully we’ll get more councillors elected.”
Emma Leyla, who described herself during the campaign as a self-declared ‘community activist’, said she wasn’t surprised by Jacqueline North’s decision to resign and wanted to stand to give local people a different voice in the community she calls home.
“I just wanted to give people a choice of having someone who would do the job with passion and actually make change. I’ve lived here all my life and I don’t just want to change Hattersley, I want to change Tameside too.
“It won’t be the end for me, I will continue to work overtime to give a lot to this community.”
LONGDENDALE BY-ELECTION RESULT
Francesca Coates (LABOUR): 489
Allan Hopwood (REFORM): 911
Kieron Wild (CONSERVATIVE): 242
Amanda Hickling (GREEN): 237
Emma Leyla (INDEPENDENT): 76
Turnout: 20.1%
Verified ballot papers: 1,965
Spoilt ballots: 10