What do we already know about the future Labour Council

3 mins read

You will find all information about the future administration on the Council’s website., The appointments will be confirmed once the Council has elected a new Leader at the Council’s annual meeting on 25 May. We present below the proposed cabinet members, with their former roles when in opposition and contact details (from top left to bottom right):

Councillor Aydin Dikerdem – Cabinet lead for housing. Responsible for the council’s housing stock, regeneration programmes and meeting the ambition to create genuinely affordable homes for residents.
This is his third term, having been first elected in 10/11/2016 during a by-election in Queenstown ward. He was previously Opposition Speaker in the Housing and Regeneration Overview and Scrutiny Committee. He is now elected in Shaftesbury & Queenstown ward.

Councillor Clare Fraser – Cabinet lead for transport. Administering policies on transport improvements and infrastructure, including roads, pavements, and parking.
This is her second term representing previously Bedford. She was Opposition Speaker in the Strategic Planning and Transportation Overview and Scrutiny Committee. She is now elected in South Balham ward.

Councillor Judi Gasser – Cabinet lead for environment. Responsible for recycling, waste collection, street cleaning, the management and maintenance of the borough’s parks and commons as well as making sure Wandsworth does everything it can as a borough to tackle the climate change emergency.
She was previously Opposition Speaker in the Education and Children’s Services Overview and Scrutiny Committee, and in the Education and Standards Group. She has kept her seat  in Furzedown ward for a second term.

Councillor Simon Hogg – Council leader.
He was previously leader of the opposition Opposition and has been continuously elected in Latchmere ward since 2014. He is now a councillor for Falconbrook ward.

Councillor Kemi Akinola – Deputy Leader of the Council and lead on the voluntary sector, business engagement and culture.
She was previously Opposition Speaker in the Finance, Resources and Climate Sustainability Overview and Scrutiny Committee. She is elected in Tooting Broadway ward. She was already deputy leader of the Labour group and this will be her second term as councillor, having been elected in 2018 for Graveney ward.

Councillor Graeme Henderson – Cabinet lead for health. Supporting Wandsworth’s elderly and vulnerable residents to ensure they receive high quality social care as well as spearheading the borough’s community public health initiatives.
He was previously Opposition Speaker in the Adult Care and Health Overview and Scrutiny Committee. In the previous term, he represented Earlsfield and is now in Roehampton ward.

Councillor Kate Stock – Cabinet lead for children. Responsible for all Council services relating to children and young people across all Wandsworth communities.
Along with Judi Gasser, she was previously Opposition Speaker in the Education and Children’s Services Overview and Scrutiny Committee, and in the Education and Standards Group. She is elected in Falconbrook ward, having been first elected in 2018 in Latchmere.

Councillor Angela Ireland – Cabinet lead for finance. Responsible for all areas of Town Hall finances, including budget setting and making sure departments are financially efficient and effective.
This is her second term. She was previously a member of the Finance, Resources and Climate Sustainability Overview and Scrutiny Committee and a member of the Audit Committee. She is elected in West Hill ward.

What to expect

On the day of the election, Labour Leader Simon Hogg said to ITV:

“We are going to build a compassionate council that truly listens and keep that same low council tax”

The day after the election he made a video announcement to Wandsworth residents:

He spoke about fairness but failed short of making any commitment on reviewing planning rules and stopping overdevelopments, including reviewing the existing estate regeneration plans driven by the Council.

For decades, the Tory councillors were claiming to listen to residents… but as people seem to realise, you can always listen and not hear what you don’t like, or worse, listen and ignore. The disillusion has infused within the local residents and election after election, more and more voted against the Conservatives, which eventually lead to last week result.

Many local residents said that they wanted a better consideration of their views, a better cooperation with the community groups and representatives. We all hope that the new Council will not only listen, but act upon what they hear from local communities.

We are certain that all the borough’s Societies and Community groups are eager to start working with them.

 

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CJI editor and Clapham Junction Action Group co-founder and coordinator since 2008, Cyril has lived in Clapham Junction since 2001.
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