IT wasn’t so long ago that this seat was Labour territory. One of the last councillors was Tony Benson. Since then it has been solid Conservative. The trio of Sue MacPherson, Jimmy Halden and Pauline Tolson seem to be a solid trinity.
Pauline Tolson won by 243 votes in 2011. Since then UKIP have emerged as a force. Their candidate, polled 485 in 2011, 567 in 2012 and 1018 in 2014.
YT thought they would win and once again, we were wrong!
We still stand by our claim, that locally, 2014 was their zenith and the rest is a slow inexorable decline.
Cllr Tolson is one of those safe, dependable councillors, who, when she speaks in council, always seems to have a salient point, whether it is the state of the infrastructure in her ward, the hygiene in food outlets or brownfield sites in the Homesteads.
Prediction: Cons hold
The Homesteads
ANDREWS Stephen John, UKIP
BYRNE Gary James, Independent
HALL Linda Kathleen, Labour
TOLSON Pauline, Conservative
