An extraordinary meeting of the Council was scheduled to take place on Tuesday 13 January 2026 to discuss the representation of political groups on council committees and to make appointments to these committees. The meeting's agenda was driven by a change in the council's political balance following the resignation of five members from the Labour Group and their subsequent formation of a new Green Party group.

Representation of Political Groups on Committees

The meeting was scheduled to consider a report from the Corporate Director Finance & Resources regarding the representation of different political groups on council committees. This review was necessitated by the formation of a new political group, the Green Party, which now comprises five councillors. The report outlined that the current membership of the council stands at 57 councillors.

The report detailed the proposed allocation of seats on various committees to reflect the revised political balance. The key principle guiding these allocations is the political balance rules prescribed by the Local Government and Housing Act 1989 and supplemented by the Local Government (Committees and Political Groups) Regulations 1990. These rules aim to ensure that the composition of decision-making and deliberative committees mirrors, as far as possible, the overall political composition of the Full Council.

Following the review, the breakdown of seats on the 5 ordinary committees to which the political balance rules formally apply was set to be:

• Labour Group: 28 seats (a reduction from 32)
• Green Group: 4 seats (a new entitlement)
• Conservative Group: 4 seats (no change)
• Liberal Democrat Group: 2 seats (no change)

Additionally, the report indicated that the Green Party councillors would be formally designated as the second Opposition Group on the Council for the purposes of the Members Allowance Scheme, replacing the Liberal Democrats.

The report also addressed the allocation of seats on other committees, including Scrutiny Committees and the Audit & Standards Advisory Committee, where the Green Group was also set to be allocated seats. The Health and Wellbeing Board, where political balance rules do not apply, was noted to continue with its existing composition of four Cabinet Members and one opposition Member, with the Conservative Group retaining the opposition seat.

Appointments to Committees and Other Relevant Bodies

Subject to the agreement on the representation of political groups, the Council was scheduled to make appointments to committees and other relevant bodies. These appointments would be made to give effect to the wishes of the political groups allocated the seats on each committee, as determined by the review of political representation.

The report also noted that the political balance on sub-committees to which the same rules apply would be reviewed at the first available meeting of the General Purposes Committee and the Licensing Committee.