Local elections 2023: Greens secure victory in Mid Suffolk

The Green Party has secured sole control of an English council for the first time.

They won 24 seats on Mid Suffolk District Council, six more than was needed for majority on the 34-seat authority.

The council was previously run by a 16-seat minority Conservative administration.

Andy Mellen, leader of the Green Party in Mid Suffolk, said: "We are looking forward to getting to work."

Victory in Mid Suffolk is the first time the Greens have had a majority on a council anywhere in England, although they have been involved in ruling as minority administrations or as part of coalitions at other councils, including Brighton, where Caroline Lucas is the party's only MP at Westminster.

The Green Party's co-leader in England and Wales, Adrian Ramsay, said the party had seen "fantastic results" in both rural and urban areas, winning seats from Labour as well as the Conservatives.He said the victory in Mid Suffolk would "pave the way for electing the first Green MP in the area as well - to really represent people on a national stage as well as locally".

Mid Suffolk saw defeats for two high profile local Conservatives.

Suzie Morley, who was the council leader before Thursday's voting, lost her Stonham seat, while Suffolk's Police and Crime Commissioner Tim Passmore was beaten in the Palgrave ward. Previously, he had been councillor in the Claydon & Barham ward.

No single party had overall control at Mid Suffolk after the last round of elections - the Conservatives held 16 seats, the Greens 12 and Liberal Democrats five, plus one was held by an independent.

The council now has six Conservative councillors and four Liberal Democrats. Labour held no seats, and has not improved on that.

The district includes the towns of Stowmarket, Needham Market and Eye.

Andrew Sinclair, BBC East politics correspondent

In a county which has a reputation for being solidly blue this result is a major triumph for the Greens and a massive embarrassment for the Conservatives.

The Green Party has had its eye on Mid Suffolk for some time. Across Suffolk it has been slowly building support over the last 10 years. It was already the main opposition on Mid Suffolk and last year it stepped up its campaigning and leafletting in the area.

When the party leaders chose Stowmarket as the place to launch their national campaign for these elections, it was a sign of how confident they were feeling.

There seem to be two reasons behind this win. On the doorsteps, candidates tell me they were picking up a lot of anti-Tory feeling. With very few Liberal Democrats and Labour candidates standing, in many wards the Greens were the only non-Conservative choice.

The other reason is the growing concern in Suffolk about perceived over-development. On the outskirts of Stowmarket a giant business park is being built to complement the nearby freeport at Felixstowe.

The growth of offshore energy has resulted in plans to dig up parts of the countryside for cabling and to build giant electricity substations. There's also a plan for a new chain of pylons running through the Suffolk countryside, although a large section of the cabling, through the Dedham Vale area of outstanding natural beauty, will be put underground.

Not far from Mid Suffolk, work is getting under way on a new Sizewell C nuclear power station on the Suffolk coast. The Greens have tapped into all of this.

The party's co-leader Adrian Ramsay has decided to stand in the new Suffolk parliamentary seat of Waveney Valley at the next general election.

He will see today's result as proof that his party can win in true blue East Anglia. That is still a long shot but after today anything is possible.

Mr Mellen, who is now waiting to be formally confirmed as Mid Suffolk's first Green council leader, said: "I think this result shows that there is a real appetite for a bunch of sensible, practical people who have got the energy and commitment to make change in their community and that's why a lot of people voted for us.

"We have been growing a party here for 20 years."

Ms Morley said the loss of her seat was "devastating" after four "really good" years.

"We've achieved such a lot for our residents and businesses throughout Mid Suffolk and it's a real shame," she added.

Mid Suffolk shares most of the running of local services with neighbouring Babergh District Council, although both have retained their distinct and separate political administrations.

The two councils' main joint office is not in either district, but is in the same building as Suffolk County Council's headquarters - in Ipswich, next to Portman Road football ground.

In Babergh, where no party had overall control prior to this week's elections and all 32 seats were up for election, the Greens gained six seats, leaving it on 10 and making it the largest party.

The authority remains in no overall control with independent councillors taking nine seats, a gain of one.

Losing eight seats, the Conservatives now have seven councillors on the authority, which includes the towns of Sudbury and Hadleigh and the Stour valley - also know as Constable Country

The Liberal Democrats gained two seats, taking them to five and Labour lost one seat, leaving them with one councillor.

Meanwhile, the Green Party have also made gains at neighbouring East Suffolk Council where all 55 seats have been up for grabs at what was an authority with a large Conservative majority.

The Greens won 16 seats, making them the largest party, gaining 12 seats. The Conservatives have 15 seats having lost 24 seats and the 23-seat majority they had prior to Thursday's election.

The authority is now in no overall control, with Labour on 12 seats, a gain of five, and the Liberal Democrats on 11 seats, a gain of eight.

Find BBC News: East of England on Facebook, external, Instagram, external and Twitter, external. If you have a story suggestion email eastofenglandnews@bbc.co.uk, external