Calls for councillor to ‘resign’ for joining Labour
A Stockport councillor has been told to "resign" for joining Labour after being elected as a Lib Dem last year.
Aron Thornley was elected as a Lib Dem councillor for Marple South and High Lane in the May 2023 local election, but left the party weeks later to stand as an independent.
Yesterday, he announced a move to Labour – and was accused by council leader Mark Hunter of "standing under a false flag" when elected.
Cllr Thornley's move to Labour is a boost to the party's standing in Stockport town hall, which is under no overall control. The Lib Dems are the largest party with 31 councillors in total, one short of a majority, ahead of Labour who now have 23.
The two other council seats in the Marple South and High Lane ward, which falls into the Hazel Grove Parliamentary constituency, are held by the Lib Dems.
Mr Thornley said he will work to address "fundamental issues around housing, inequality and having a council that gets the basics right."
"The privilege to serve my local community will always be the most important part of my work as a councillor and I will continue to support my fellow councillors in Marple South and High Lane to work towards the changes that our residents want to see," he added.
"Joining a new team of councillors across the Hazel Grove constituency will give me the opportunity to share ideas and reflect on some of the work that other Labour councillors are doing locally, and their support of my work in Marple South and High Lane will be greatly appreciated."
The Hazel Grove constituency is a political battleground in Stockport. The seat was previously held by ex-Tory MP William Wragg, and was won by Lib Dem MP Lisa Smart in July's general election who received more than 17,000 votes.
Ms Smart holds a 6,500 majority over Labour who finished second, but the party managed to increase its number of votes from 5,500 in 2019 to more than 10,800 this year, which it said was a sign of the progress it is making in Lib Dem and Conservative heartlands. Conservative candidate Paul Athans finished in third place.
Cllr David Meller, leader of Stockport Labour, welcomed Mr Thornley's switch to Stockport council's Labour Group.
He said: "I know Aron has thought very deeply about this decision and just like voters across the country did in May, has put his trust in the Labour Party and Keir Starmer to deliver the change our country so desperately needs after 14 painful years of the Conservatives in power.
"We've seen how Labour is growing across Hazel Grove constituency, as our recent general election result shows by coming a clear second for the first time in living memory. We now have seven councillors across the Hazel Grove constituency and our first in Marple.
"Stockport Labour is the only group on Stockport council to have councillors across all three constituencies, making us the truly representative Stopfordian voice on this council. Aron will only add to that voice and make it stronger."
Cllr Mark Hunter, leader of Stockport council and Lib Dems, called for the new Labour councillor to step down. He said: "Cllr Thornley was elected as a Liberal Democrat councillor by the residents of Marple South and High Lane at the all-out elections on May 4 2023.
"Less than ten days later he resigned from the party and from the group, saying he was pursuing a job opportunity that was incompatible with continued party membership.
"Our assumption was that Cllr Thornley would quickly do the decent thing and resign as a councillor. Here we are, nearly 16 months later, and Cllr Thornley has instead chosen to join the Labour Party and the Labour Group in Stockport.
"He clearly stood for election last year under a false flag, in a seat he knows he would never have won as a Labour candidate.
"I repeat my call to him to do the decent thing and resign, allowing the residents of Marple South and High Lane to be represented by someone who is honest and straightforward about their political affiliations."
Cllr Thornley was first elected to Stockport council in 2019 as a Lib Dem.
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