'No confidence' motion published ahead of meeting
Ben Schofield/BBCA motion of no confidence in a city council's minority Labour administration has been published ahead of a meeting next week.
An alliance of three parties on Peterborough City Council - Peterborough First, the Liberal Democrats and the Green Party - wants to takeover the authority.
The motion, to be voted on at a full council meeting on 18 June, states a reduction in Labour group members has left opponents "doubting the capacity of the administration to effectively deliver".
Dennis Jones, the council's Labour leader, dubbed it a "politically motivated back-room plot", adding: "Their actions do nothing but risk throwing Peterborough back into instability and chaos."
Jones became the leader in May 2024 - the first time in more than 25 years a Labour councillor had headed the city council.
Deciding vote
Peterborough City Council is made up of 17 Labour ,13 Peterborough First, 11 Conservative, eight Liberal Democrat, six independent and five Green Party councillors.
With the Conservative group deciding not to join the alliance, next week's vote is expected to be close, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.
The leader of the Peterborough First group is expected to takeover if the motion is passed.
If it is a draw, a deciding vote will be cast by Mayor Judy Fox or Deputy Mayor Peter Hiller, both Peterborough First councillors.
It would not be the first time that Peterborough First have taken control of the authority.
A vote of no confidence saw former Conservative councillor and leader Wayne Fitzgerald ousted in November 2023.
The latest motion states: "This council has lost confidence in the current administration."
It adds: "Members of the Peterborough First, Liberal Democrat and Green groups have decided to form an alliance to provide an administration that works across party lines to take advantage of the skills and experience in each group and to increase transparency and collaborative working [with] all parties represented on the council to help meet the challenges and opportunities that the council faces.
"In order to achieve this [the] council is now calling for the removal of the current leader, so that it can consider an alternative leader."
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