THE new leader of Wokingham’s Conservatives will be the current town mayor.
Cllr Julian McGhee-Sumner was the only candidate to put their name forward for a leadership contest and, under the party’s rules, he automatically becomes the leader.
He will replace Cllr Charlotte Haitham Taylor, who lost a vote of no confidence last week.
She had only been leader since May last year after being Cllr Keith Baker in a leadership contest, however her short reign has been a rocky one.
In this year’s local elections, her deputy, David Lee, lost his Norreys seat, leading her to appoint Cllr McGhee-Sumner in his place. However, at the end of the summer, Cllr McGhee-Sumner resigned from the Executive, saying “I disagree with the direction of travel under the leader and felt it was time to move on”.
Now he is the group’s leader.
On Thursday, Cllr Haitham Taylor will resign as leader of the council and make a statement at the beginning of the meeting. However, it is not expected that Cllr McGhee-Sumner will become council leader until he is voted in by council and this is expected to take place on Friday, December 14 at a special council meeting.
Cllr McGhee-Sumner is also currently serving as Wokingham Town Mayor.
On Wokingham Borough Council, he has served as Wescott ward councillor since 2007. It’s an area he knows well as he’s lived there since he was nine.
Away from the council, Cllr McGhee-Sumner works in the finance and insurance industry.
