Conservatives withdraw from City Council

Statement from Victoria Charleston, Leader of Salisbury Lib Dem City Council Group:

I am deeply disappointed that the Conservative group has thrown its teddies out of the cot, abandoning cooperation and power sharing that the people of Salisbury told us they wanted. The result of the Conservative group choosing opposition over solutions is that there is now no power sharing administration in place, and no formal opposition.

The Conservatives talk about ‘taking power back’, it was Conservative run Wiltshire Council that got rid of Salisbury District Council and left our community feeling ignored. It’s rather ironic that Charles McGrath, as both a city councillor and a wiltshire councillor wants to ‘take power back’ from himself!

I really thought this new Conservative group had outgrown their infighting and pettiness which had seen them change leaders four times in twelve months, lost £1.3m of investment to the city with People Friendly Salisbury, and accepted extraordinarily costly street cleaning contracts from Wiltshire Council without proper scrutiny.

Frankly, I see no place for party politics and infighting at the City Council and the Liberal Democrats in Salisbury will continue to work with all who wish to see our city thrive, ensuring strong leadership, vision, and investment in our area.

I look forward to conversations with the other groups to pick up the pieces on the Conservative decision and work out how we move forward with our agenda to ensure Salisbury is a green city, a thriving city, an active listening city and a wonderful place for everyone to live, work and enjoy.



Victoria Charleston

Leader of Salisbury Lib Dem City Council Group