Council leader and deputy to stand down

The leader and deputy leader of Cambridge City Council announced they intended to step down from their leadership roles in May.

Labour's Mike Davey, who has led the council since 2023, said he wanted to spend more time with his family and concentrate on being a ward councillor.

His deputy, Alice Gilderdale, planned to resign as a councillor as she was moving away from the city.

The Labour Party is set to select a new leader on 11 May.

Gilderdale's resignation will trigger a city council by-election in her East Chesterton ward. This will take place on 1 May at the same time as elections for Cambridgeshire County Council and the Combined Authority Mayor.

A city council by-election will also take place in West Chesterton as current councillor Sam Carling wants to concentrate on his position as MP for North West Cambridgeshire. A position he was elected to in July.

In a joint statement, Davey and Gilderdale said it had been "an immense challenge and a real pleasure leading the City Council over the past two years."

"It is no secret that being an elected council member is a huge time, financial and emotional commitment, and there is still a long way to go before the roles are truly accessible to everyone," they said.

"We have both been lucky enough to have the resources needed to give our full time and attention to our positions, but after two years we have decided that it is time to let others take on the responsibilities."

The new leadership of the Labour Group will be elected by councillors at the Labour Group AGM on 11th May.

They will then be proposed as leaders of the council at the City Council's AGM on 22nd May.

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