'We've got a lot of work to do': Walsall Labour group selects new leader

Councillor Matt Ward has been named as the new man in charge, with Councillor Tina Jukes taking up the role of deputy leader of the opposition group on Walsall Council.

Councillor Ward, who represents Darlaston South, said his initial focus would be on rebuilding the depleted group and then setting out a vision for the future of the town.

The top positions in Walsall's Labour group became available when the previous leader Aftab Nawaz and deputy Khizar Hussain quit the party – along with five other members – over Sir Keir Starmer’s stance over Gaza.

Councillors Nawaz and Hussain, along with Hajran Bashir, Sabina Ditta, Naheed Gultasib, Farhana Hassan, Saiqa Nasreen and Abdus Nazir sit as independents.

This move strengthened the ruling Conservatives' grip on power and now gives them a 25-seat majority over Labour, who remain as main opposition but now with only 12 councillors.

Councillor Ward, who runs his own business and has recently adopted two children, was first elected in Blakenall in 2016 – a seat he held until 2019.

The 36-year-old returned to the chamber when he claimed the Darlaston South seat in May last year.

He said: “I’m delighted to have been selected as the new Labour leader of the Walsall group.

“We’ve got a lot of work to do – the last few years have shown we haven’t connected with the voters and my job now is to make sure we are a credible alternative going forward.

“My initial focus is to rebuild as following the split, the group is smaller. I want to engage with our membership so we can engage with our communities more often.

“For some reason we don’t seem to have connected enough so my job is to get out there as much as I can, as much as the group can, so we are visible within our communities.

“I will start working on long term plans for Walsall. Clearly not everything about Walsall is as great as the Tories will make out.

“Over the next few months I’ll be setting out what I will do to enable Labour to take control of the council in future.

“Christmas is a time for people to spend with their families but in the new year you will see a completely different Walsall Labour going out talking to our communities, listening to them and finding out what their issues are.”

He said addressing issues such as violent crime in the borough, addressing housing waiting lists and raising education standards were among his priorities.

He said: “Myself and Councillor Jukes are both born and bred in Beechdale and we know what’s got to be done and are ready to take the fight to the Tories and be an effective opposition in Walsall.”