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Cheshire East Council elects first Labour leader

BBC Sam CorcoranBBC
Sam Corcoran said voters had rejected the Tories.

Cheshire East Council's first Labour leader has been elected after the party did a deal with independent councillors.

Newly-elected Sam Corcoran said that the two groups would run a joint cabinet for the next year.

No party has overall control of the authority after the Conservatives lost 19 seats in the local elections.

Labour will also run Cheshire West and Chester Council, despite being one seat short of a majority.

Cheshire East council meeting
The deal between Labour and the independent councillors will last a year

The party lost control of the borough after extensive boundary changes and the loss of a seat to the Liberal Democrats.

Cheshire West Labour leader Louise Gittins said it was "a huge honour and privilege" to be elected, after opposition members abstained from the vote on Tuesday night.

Before his election, new Cheshire East Labour leader Sam Corcoran said "the electors of Cheshire East clearly rejected the previous rotten Conservative administration".

He said the deal with independent councillors would last for one year while a consultation is held to decide whether to scrap the ruling cabinet, instead running the council through a series of committees.