The Brexit Party wins control of Hartlepool council

Updated
The Brexit Party, led by Nigel Farage, have taken control of Hartlepool council (PA Images)
The Brexit Party, led by Nigel Farage, have taken control of Hartlepool council (PA Images)

The Brexit Party has won control of Hartlepool Borough Council after forming a pact with the Conservatives.

Nine borough councillors joined Nigel Farage’s party on Thursday night.

A Brexit Party spokesperson later announced that it had formed a pact with three Conservatives, in a move which it said "put country before party".

The new group will replace the Independent Union and Conservative Group which had previously been running the council.

The Brexit Party-Conservative coalition now has 12 councillors on the 33-seat council, compared with Labour’s 10.

Labour lost overall control of the council in May, with the council’s former leader blaming “a divided party”.

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Divisions have emerged since the EU referendum in 2016 when 70 per cent of the Hartlepool electorate voted Leave.

Party chairman Richard Tice told the BBC: "Regardless of the shenanigans in Westminster, Brexiteers in the North East are pushing to take back control so they can respect the Brexit vote."

Brexit Party chairman Richard Tice applauds during a Brexit Party rally in London, Tuesday, May 21, 2019. Some 400 million Europeans from 28 countries head to the polls from Thursday to Sunday to choose their representatives at the European Parliament for the next five years. Farage's Brexit Party is leading opinion polls in the contest for 73 U.K. seats in the 751-seat European Parliament. (AP Photo/Frank Augstein)
Brexit Party chairman Richard Tice hailed the new coalition as part of an attempt to 'respect the Brexit vote'. (Getty)

"Hartlepool has long been a target for UKIP and now the Brexit Party in Westminster elections.

"With 12 councillors the Brexit Party and Conservative coalition would be the biggest group in the 33 seat Hartlepool council."

While Councillor Tom Cassidy, who has joined The Brexit Party, said: "I could no longer sit back and witness the 70% of people who voted here in 2016 being ignored by MPs in Westminster.

"Joining The Brexit Party as one united team is the only way we can stand up to the establishment and Labour Party who now back Remain.

“Local Labour MP Mike Hill no longer represents the people of Hartlepool. With The Brexit Party now in full swing, he and his Labour colleague’s days are now numbered.

Hartlepool becomes the first council under the control of the Brexit party in the north-east of England, where Nigel Farage is fighting hard to make inroads.

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