Dudley Council year in review: Budget crisis, defections, protests and tram delays
Dudley Council looks set for a momentous 2026 as it continues to face challenges including pressure on its finances, political upheaval, unrest on immigration and delayed regeneration projects.
With the new year on the horizon here is a round-up of some of the biggest moments from the outgoing civic year.
The authority started 2025 in the midst of a fiscal firestorm with dire warnings that without drastic action it would not be able to pay its bills.
The minority Conservative administration put forward plans to cut £42m from the council’s spending and faced days of tough scrutiny before the crunch vote on whether to approve the budget.
The vote, at a meeting on February 24, passed but only with the support of three Liberal Democrat councillors and independent Andrew Tromans who later joined the Lib Dems.
The price for their support included money for a feasibility study on setting up a parish council in Cradley, the halting of the closure of two public toilets and delays to cuts to the council’s Welfare RightsTeam.
The quartet’s support for the budget was slammed by the then Labour group leader, Cllr Pete Lowe, who said: “We have seen the capitulation of the Liberal Democrats, it’s worse than a deal this is playing politics with people’s lives.
“It is an appalling misuse of democracy, politics should be better than this.”
The political landscape in the council chamber shifted throughout the year as councillors made moves and new groups were formed.
The Labour group took hits, Cllr Steve Edwards was kicked out of the party in February for criticising Keir Starmer and in March Cllr Pete Lowe left after proposals to cut welfare by the Westminster government.
More Labour councillors followed and joined Cllrs Lowe and Edwards to eventually form the Black Country Party which currently has six seats on the authority.
Reform UK gained a presence in the chamber when independent Cllr Shaun Keasey signed up for the party, he was later joined by Conservative defectors Cllrs James Clinton and Jason Thorne.
Councillors faced pressure in the summer after protests about housing asylum seekers and illegal immigrants in hotels in Dudley borough.
In September demonstrators gathered at Dudley Council House ahead of a meeting of the authority where they had discussions with the borough’s leader on the steps of the council house.
The evening took a disturbing turn when individuals gained unauthorised access to the council house, prompting the authority to hire security staff to guard the building.
Campaigners were back in Dudley when they packed the council chamber’s public gallery for a debate on asylum prompted by the submission of a 3,000 name petition organised by Reform UK campaigner Marco Longhi.
The council chamber was also the scene for a debate on delays on the long-awaited Midlands Metro tram line to Dudley.
The link from Wednesbury was originally to be completed in 2022 but was put off until 2024 then 2025.
News the project was held-up further and would not carry passengers until early 2026 was not well-received by Conservative councillor Ian Kettle who, during a debate, described the scheme as ‘one debacle after another’.
