Stourbridge MP standing down as councillor
Voters will have an unscheduled seat to fill in May’s local elections after Cat Eccles confirmed she will stand down.
Cllr Eccles, who is also Labour MP for Stourbridge, has been under fire over her 36 percent attendance record at Dudley Council meetings in the current administrative year.
The Wollaston and Stourbridge Town ward councillor hit back after her Conservative predecessor in Parliament, Suzanne Webb, described Ms Eccles’ attendance as ‘woeful’.
Cat Eccles said: “Since being elected as an MP I’ve always said I would stand down as a councillor at the next scheduled election, to avoid unnecessary expense to the council for a by-election.
“I have not taken an allowance for being a councillor since July 2024, and I have continued to represent my ward residents as well as serving the wider constituency in Westminster.
“I have attended key council meetings, like budget setting, but as meetings often clash with Parliament it hasn’t been possible to attend every single one.”
A Liberal Democrat councillor has also been critical of Cllr Eccles.
At a meeting of the full council on February 23, Cllr Andrew Tromans, who also represents Wollaston and Stourbridge Town, said: “I make no apology for standing up for my residents.
“For the reference of my ward colleagues, particularly the one who has an attendance rate of less than 50 percent in this chamber, that is what representation looks like.”
Cllr Eccles told the Local Democracy Reporting Service: “As a councillor and an MP I support hundreds of residents every single week, resolving issues, providing support and signposting, and raising issues with the council and ministers.
“The real work of a community representative are these interactions which can make a tangible difference to people’s lives.
“It has been an honour to serve my home ward of Wollaston and Stourbridge Town as a councillor and I’m proud of the work I’ve done for local people.
“I’d like to thank all the residents who have supported me over the last three years.”
