A CONSERVATIVE councillor has said he is backing a Lib Dem candidate in Thursday’s local elections.
Marc Brunel-Walker, the executive member for economic development and regeneration at neighbouring Bracknell Forest Council, lives in Wokingham Without and says he will vote for Jordan Montgomery rather than the Conservative candidate.
One third of Wokingham Borough Council is up for election on Thursday, May 4, including the seat currently held by Cllr Christopher Browning.
Cllr Brunel-Walker has been a Conservative councillor for 20 years and currently represents Crown Wood Ward, but he is not standing in this year’s elections, so will cease to be a councillor after Thursday’s vote.
In his post on social media, he wrote: “As you know, I am retiring from Bracknell Forest Council (OK I would have stood one more time but frankly I have p***** off the local association because I have dared to criticise the MP and the government).
“This time – I am thinking of what’s the best for me as a resident. I am backing Jordan Montgomery to be our next elected councillor. I’m doing that because I think he is head and shoulders the better candidate, he has done more to engage with residents than any of our current councillors, and because frankly I am fed up with the lies and broken promises of the local Conservatives.”
He added he “doesn’t trust the Conservatives in Wokingham to protect our ward from over development,” and that he would be voting Lib Dem “for the first time in my life”.
He also noted in a following comment that “this public show of faith and endorsement of an opposition candidate would be enough to probably have me thrown out of the party”.
In return, Jordan Montgomery thanked Cllr Brunel-Walker for his support.
The candidate is standing to unseat Conservative councillor Chris Bowring, with the seat also contested by Labour’s Rona Noble. The ward is represented by three councillors, with one seat contested at each election.
Mr Bowring was last elected in 2019 with 1,184 votes—52.1% of the total, having previously represented Evendons ward. Last year, it was a closer contest between Montgomery and Conservative Dave Davies in the same seat last year—with the Tory taking 47.1% against the Lib Dem’s 40.9%.
The Conservative candidate told the Local Democracy News Service: “My campaign is going very well. I’m getting very good reactions on the doorstep. People are concerned about the Liberal Democrats’ failure to take note of people’s views.”
He added, for example “they didn’t give voters the opportunity to say whether they wish to keep weekly bin collections”.
