Wirral's independent local news website
Local elections in Wirral and throughout the United Kingdom are due to be held on Thursday 4 May 2023.
The move to whole council elections will mean that from this year the council elections will be held once every four years, rather than previously being held in three out of every four years. The change comes after councillors passed a resolution to change to whole council elections.
The UK Government has introduced a requirement for voters to show photo ID when voting at a polling station.
This new requirement will apply for the first time in England at the local elections on Thursday 4 May 2023. From October 2023 it will also apply to UK General elections.
Valid Photo ID
You may already have a form of photo ID that is acceptable as you can use any of the following:
See the full list of acceptable ID on the Electoral Commission website
birkenhead.news contacted the four main parties – Conservative, Green Party, Labour and the Liberal Democrats – and asked them to provide a 200-word Wirral-wide manifesto. Below, in alphabetical order by party name, are each of the party’s responses.
The main image shows the local party leaders – Top left: Janette Williamson, Labour, Top right: Tom Anderson, Conservative, Bottom left: Pat Cleary, Green Party, Bottom Right: Phil Gilchrist, Liberal Democrats.
The elections for local councillors will be the last in Wirral until 2027. So it matters who is elected and that they do better than the last 10 years.
Here in Wirral, with a Labour-led Council, four Labour MPs, a Labour Metro Mayor and a Labour Police Commissioner it is important that there is constructive opposition.
If our Borough follows Liverpool and becomes a ‘one party state’ then we will end up with the same problems faced by that city.
That’s one of the reasons why more and more people vote differently at different elections – choosing the candidates and parties they feel are best to represent them. This helps to provide the checks and balances that ensure any proposals and plans are questioned and challenged.
We’ve seen in recent years how more Labour councillors can’t or won’t do that. Too often they are told what to do and ‘whipped’ into supporting proposals that do not have wider support in the community. More Labour councillors after 4th May are not the answer.
Find out more at https://www.wirralconservatives.org.uk/
Following last year’s record gains for the Greens in Wirral we are approaching these elections in buoyant mood. Wirral residents have seen that electing Green councillors means a hard-working year-round presence in their area. They also see us standing up for a fairer, greener borough.
Our key promise to voters is to continue working hard by engaging with residents and following up on the things that matter to them. Official data from Wirral Council clearly backs this up. In 2022 the typical Green councillor reported 273 issues on behalf of residents. This was way ahead of the Lib Dems (84) and Labour/Conservative (both 37).
By electing Green councillors, residents know their area will get the attention it deserves.
Greens have led the way in promoting social justice and protecting services. When Labour and Tory councillors voted to close libraries and leisure centres, Green councillors voted to save them. Green gains have forced the council to:
You can read more about our policies at: https://wirral.greenparty.org.uk/policy-statement/
Labour’s priority is the people of Wirral, and providing a safe, well-maintained and inclusive borough.
The Conservative government talks about levelling up, while delivering further austerity and cuts. Labour puts promises into action.
Our commitment to the environment is key, and our Local Plan protects Wirral’s green spaces, putting new housing only on brownfield sites.
The regeneration of areas including Birkenhead, Wallasey, Seacombe and New Brighton is exciting.
Labour councillors are community councillors who roll their sleeves up and get involved. We ensure that residents’ voices are heard.
This year we have saved youth services and play schemes including The Addy, Gautby Road Playscheme, The Hive, The Beechwood Playscheme and Pilgrim Street, giving young people somewhere to go.
We avoided moving Birkenhead Central Library and Wallasey Central Library and the closure of nine libraries – Beechwood, Eastham, Greasby, Leasowe, Moreton, Rock Ferry, St James, Seacombe and Upton.
We also stopped the closure of a leisure centre and two swimming pools and retained maintenance of parks, countryside, street cleansing and alleyway clearance.
We saved the community patrol team and CCTV control room, helping reduce nuisance crime.
The Wirral Conservatives voted against all of this.
Please use all of your votes for Labour.
Find out more at https://www.facebook.com/WirralLabourOfficial/
Our aim is to make Wirral Council efficient, responsive and compassionate.
Our vision has these priorities –
Find out more at https://wirrallibdems.org.uk/en/
Following is a full list of Wirral candidates listed alphabetically by surname. Where a candidate’s name is in italics, it denotes that that person is the sitting councillor.
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