News / Politics
Deputy mayor Craig Cheney to stand down as councillor
Another senior Labour cabibet member will stand down at the next local elections.
Deputy mayor and cabinet member for finance, Craig Cheney, has made the “difficult decision” not to seek re-election after nine years representing Hillfields ward.
It comes just days after the Labour group announced that Bristol City Council’s longest serving councillor Helen Holland, cabinet member for adult social care and former leader of the authority, will not contest her Hartcliffe & Withywood seat.
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Bristol24/7 also understands that fellow deputy mayor Asher Craig is also unlikely to be standing for re-election in May 2024.
The current mayoral system, which has an all-Labour cabinet despite the Greens being the largest group in the chamber, will be replaced by a committee system after 2024’s local elections.
Craig Cheney and Helen Holland could well be joined by other members of Marvin Rees’ cabinet choosing not to stand for reelection – photo: Labour Party
Cheney has overseen the council’s purse strings for the last eight years, balancing the books as required by law.
But he has come under fire alongside others in the Labour administration for financial calamities, such as the collapse of Bristol Energy and the ballooning costs of the Bristol Beacon refurbishment.
Speaking of his time in office, Cheney said: “I was exceptionally proud to be elected as councillor to Hillfields in 2015, the ward that I live in and grew up around.
“I love being a councillor for our community, but I’ve made the difficult decision to stand down next May.
“During my time as a local councillor, I’ve worked with local people to improve our ward – securing funding to improve the community centre, co-locating the children’s centre in the library and founding the Friends of Coombe Brook Nature Reserve – creating the positive changes our area so sorely needs.
“I’ve also spent eight years as cabinet member for finance and seven years as deputy mayor.
“It’s been a challenging period of time. Government austerity has forced councils to pass on its budget cuts, but I’m proud that we’ve managed to protect frontline services like libraries and children’s centres, when many councils couldn’t afford to do so.”
Marvin Rees and his deputy mayors, Asher Craig and Craig Cheney – photo: Ellie Pipe
Kelvin Blake has been selected to replace Cheney as one of Labour’s two candidates in Hillfields ward, alongside incumbent Ellie King, cabinet member for communities and public health.
Blake, a former Bristol city councillor for Filwood, is a trustee for organisations including Second Step, the Robins Foundation and the SS Great Britain.
He is a disability and Labour activist and was the election agent for both mayor Marvin Rees and Bristol East MP Kerry McCarthy.
Main photo: Craig Cheney
Read next:
- ‘We need an inquiry into the costs of refurbishing Bristol Beacon’
- Deputy mayor apologises for Bristol Energy saga
- Deputy mayor questions audit report on Bristol Energy failure
- Craig Cheney blocks multi-million pound youth project in derelict building
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