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Greens and Lib Dems no longer in joint group on council

Green Party Pete Sudbury, Ian Middleton and Robin Bennett stand outside the county council offices. They are in front of location signs, but they are not in the modern style, and point in the directions of places like Burford, Ledwell, Buckingham, and Bloxham. Pete has short grey hair and wears a blue v-neck jumper over a tie and light blue shirt. Ian has a white goatee, wears black-rimmed glasses, and a black, grey and orange patterned shirt. Robin has short greying hair and wears a blue jacket over a green shirt.Green Party
The three Green councillors have stressed there is no split between them and the Liberal Democrats

Two political parties will no longer be part of a joint group on a county authority going forwards.

The Green Party and Liberal Democrats will operate as separate groups on Oxfordshire County Council, though both say their alliance still stands.

The Greens said they were leaving because of the "imminent local government reorganisation and devolution proposals which all parties are keen to play a part in".

Council leader and Liberal Democrat Liz Leffman called it a "technical change" that would not change the relationship between the parties.

Both were still "enthusiastic" about maintaining their "co-operative working arrangement", the Greens said.

The two parties first formed an alliance, along with Labour, in 2021 after the local elections resulted in no party winning the 32-seat required majority. Labour quit the coalition in 2023.

Liz Leffman sits in a BBC studio. She has short silvery hair in a bob, and wears a grey t-shirt. She is on a long red sofa with a studio backdrop.
Liz Leffman said the decision would not affect the administration of the council

The new arrangement matches those at Cherwell District Council and West Oxfordshire District Council, where the Greens and the Lib Dems share control but as two separate groups.

Green Councillor Pete Sudbury retains his role as deputy leader and cabinet member in charge of the environment.

But his party said it needed to have a "separate political space whilst still remaining in a mutually supportive partnership".

Leader Ian Middleton said it was in response to "what could be seismic changes in the way local government is organised over the next few years".

He added: "The only difference is that I will now be directly involved in the discussions surrounding local government reorganisation on behalf of my Green colleagues and the wider Oxfordshire Green Party, rather than as a deputy leader of a combined group which has its limitations."

Ms Leffman said: "It really makes no difference whether we are two separate parties or one group.

"We were never one party, we were just called the Lib Dem Green group to be able to form that administration.

"It's just a technical change that isn't going to change anything from the point of view of the resident or indeed the administration of the council."

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