Rare bright spot in a disastrous night for their party in London

The Chiswick Gunnersbury councillors celebrate their victory

The Conservative Party may have successfully defended all of but one of their seats in Chiswick on Hounslow Council.

They held onto all three seats in Chiswick Gunnersbury and Chiswick Homefields ward but there was a shock disappointment for them in Chiswick Riverside ward in which Labour took one of the available seats in what was widely assumed to be a solidly Conservative area although newly redrawn boundaries have meant the ward now incorporated parts of Brentford. Chiswick has not had a Labour Councillor since Pat Sterne stood down in Chiswick Homefields in 2002.

The relatively good performance of the Conservatives was in defiance of the odds and the expectations of some of the sitting councillors themselves. It came as, elsewhere in London, their party performed poorly losing Wandsworth, Barnet and Westminster to Labour.

In Chiswick Gunnersbury ward, the one which was believed to be most vulnerable before the election, there was a margin of just 23 votes between the third placed Conservative candidate and the top Labour hopeful but there was a strong personal vote for Cllr Jo Biddolph who comfortably topped the poll. She had campaigned aggressively on the issue of the council’s Streetspace measures and Cycleway 9. Hanif Khan, who had formerly been responsible for transport in the borough, polled the lowest of the Labour candidates.

In Chiswick Homefields ward veteran incumbents Gerard McGregor and John Todd held on comfortably with Jack Emsley joining them on the council. Cllr Emsley said, " “I’m really honoured to be elected by residents in Chiswick Homefields. The message from the community that we heard on the doorstep during the campaign was very clear: Chiswick wants representatives who listen to their concerns and then act. I’m excited to get started!”

The successful candidates in Homefields ward. Picture: Jack Emsley

Amy Croft stopped the Conservatives making a clean sweep of all the Chiswick seats pipping Seb Wallace by just 9 votes to be the third placed candidate after four recounts.

Turnout in the two Chiswick wards over 40% compared to the borough average of 33.6% 65,260 votes were made in Hounslow from an electorate of 194,247.

One local Conservative party member said, “This is a resounding personal endorsement for the sitting councillors particularly in Chiswick Gunnersbury which, to be perfectly frank, we thought we had little chance of winning. Even though we were hearing lots of support on the doorstep we thought national issues would come into play on polling day. What is really gratifying is that this success wasn’t achieved due to a low turnout – it was a genuine reflection of cross-community support for what these councillors have been doing for their constituents.”

The Labour Party remains in overall control of the Hounslow Council, with 52 Councillors, out of a total of 62 seats in 22 wards. The Conservative party won 10 seats including ones in Feltham North and Hanwell Village as well as the eight retained in Chiswick.

Returning Officer, and Chief Executive of Hounslow Council, Niall Bolger, said, “Thank you to everyone who voted. Local elections are one of the most important parts of local democracy. It’s vital that as many people as possible have had their say on how they would like decisions to be made over the coming four years.

“My thanks go to all those involved in canvassing, staffing polling stations and working overnight at the count. I look forward to working with the members old and new, that make up the new administration.”

In neighbouring Southfield ward, which is in Ealing borough, the news was less palatable for the Conservatives with the incumbent Liberal Democrat councillors increasing their vote and two of the Tories falling behind the Green Party candidate. Labour's vote in the ward held steady.

May 7, 2022