There has been a second political fallout between Conservative councillors in Brent after only half attended an official general meeting to determine their leader.
All six elected councillors for Kenton and Brondesbury wards were invited to an the Annual General Meeting held by the Conservative Party at Brent Civic Centre on Wednesday evening, but the Kenton trio failed to attend..
There is no love lost between the six councillors after the Kenton trio, elected as leaders last year, and their Brondesbury Park counterparts fell out last year.
The feud saw Cllr Warren and his ward colleagues Cllr Joel Davidson and Cllr Carol Shaw separate from Kenton councillors Suresh Kansagra, Reg Colwill and the late Bhiku Patel to form the Brondesbury Park Conservatives.
At the meeting Cllr John Warren from the Brondesbury Park Conservatives was elected as the new leader of Brent Tories, and Cllr Carol Shaw his deputy, ahead of a vote by the full Brent Council next week.
Cllr Davidson said: “We appealed to the Conservative Party as a way of resolving the dispute. They arranged the AGM and invited all Conservatives to attend to form a group. They made it very clear on the invitation that anyone who did not attend would not be considered to be a candidate for the next elections. It was extremely clear.
“We attended and they did not come.
He added: “They’ve been given until Friday to accept this new group and join our group as the Brent Conservatives and if they don’t do that I understand they will have to be expelled from the party.”
Cllr Suresh Kansagra said they did not attend the meeting because they did not recognise it as constitutional and will challenge any decision not made in their favour.
He told the Times: “We called our meeting on May 11, a proper legal meeting, our constitution and the constitution of the conservative central office. That constitution allows only the leader, the leader of the group and members. They were not invited because they are not paid members of the group.
“As far as we are concerned we are the conservative group on Brent council unless I am told otherwise from anywhere. Central office does not have the authority to call other AGMs under the constitution of the group.”
He said they were notified to attend the meeting but not consulted.
“We do not recognise them as Conservative Party members,” he said.
“Brent Council will vote on whether we are the main party or whether we are not and if that is not in our favour will be challenging it.”
The Conservative Party has failed comment on the feud.
Related link: Brent Conservatives to split in political fall-out
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