No date yet set for Welsh by-election after councillor’s shock resignation
Elgan Hearn, Local democracy reporter
A date for a Powys County Council by-election in Llandrindod Wells, following the shock resignation of Liberal Democrat Josie Ewing, has not been set yet.
Late on Thursday night (March 19) Ms Ewing who had represented the Llandrindod South ward since her election in the May 2022, took to social media to announce that she was resigning.
By Friday, lunchtime (March 20) her profile on the Powys council website page for councillors had already been deleted with the page coming up as unavailable.
The council were asked by the LDRS when the by-election would be taking place?
A Powys council spokesman said: “No date has been set yet.
“Details will be announced in due course.”
The resignation Ms Ewing posted on her Facebook page exposes a problem with Cabinet led model of local government which is prevalent right across the country.
Outside of the cabinet and some group leadership roles the opportunities for backbench councillors to make their mark has become very limited.
Ms Ewing said: “This has not been an easy decision.
“Serving the community, I live in has been an honour, and I am deeply grateful to every resident who trusted me to represent them.
“I have listened to residential and staff concerns and carried your voices into rooms and meetings- where, too often, they are not truly heard.
“I cannot continue in a role that, in reality, holds so little power to deliver the change our communities, are crying out for.
“Too many people are being let down by outdated frameworks, slow processes, and a lack of meaningful accountability.
“Yet, when you try to challenge it — when you try to push harder for answers, fairness, equality and justice — you quickly learn how restricted you are.”
Asking too many questions can open up councillors to accusations of breaching their code of conduct.
“To stay and feel unable to bring huge concerns to anyone’s table, does not sit morally right with me,” said Ms Ewing.
She added: “This is not the end of my voice, far from it, this is only the beginning.”
Her public resignation has received a response from some of her fellow councillors.
Council chairman, Cllr Williams Powell (Liberal Democrat – Talgarth) said he was: “gutted to read these words.”
Cllr Claire Hill (Liberal Democrat – Crickhowell) said: “So sorry you’ve felt the need to do this; I shall miss our little backbenchers gripes together.”
Cllr Gareth Ratcliffe (Liberal Democrat – Hay) who is also the chairman of Bannau Brycheiniog National Park Authority added: “Good luck and keep battling.”
The resignation will come as a blow to the Liberal Democrats who welcomed Cllr Tom Colbert (Bronllys and Felinfach) back into the group last month.
This leaves the Liberal Democrat drop to 22 councillors and the coalition with Labour slip back to 31 out of 67 councillors and one vacancy.
Support our Nation today
For the price of a cup of coffee a month you can help us create an independent, not-for-profit, national news service for the people of Wales, by the people of Wales.
Throughout my life, i have lived and worked, sometimes at different times, all over Cymru, mainly north and south with the mid zone mainly just being passed through. Prior to the A470 upgrade taking the road around the low bridge (Cwmbach/Llechryd), i would pass through Llandrindod but in recent times, i have spent three stints of work and stopovers in the town, got to know it a bit and liked it very much. I spoke to many locals during my stays and never once guaged any tone in conversation which would suggest that anyone i met, on a date to… Read more »
I believe the cabinet system was one of Tony Blair’s antidemocratic manoeuvres. Not many now realise that when you vote for a local councillor you are voting to send someone to come back and tell you what central government or more realistically the civil service has told the cabinet to do.