# 2003 Sandwell Metropolitan Borough Council election

The 2003 Sandwell Metropolitan Borough Council election took place on 1 May 2003 to elect members of Sandwell Metropolitan Borough Council in the West Midlands, England. One third of the council was up for election and the Labour Party stayed in overall control of the council.
After the election, the composition of the council was:
* Labour 55
* Conservative 9
* Liberal Democrat 6
* British National Party 2

## Campaign

Before the election the Labour party held control of the council with 57 seats, while the Conservatives had 8 seats and the Liberal Democrats 6 seats. A further seat was vacant in Great Bridge ward after the death of Labour councillor Jean Marson. 24 seats were being contested in the election by a total of 83 candidates. Labour was defending 20 of the 24 seats, with the mayor and 5 members of the cabinet among those contesting the election. The Conservatives contested every seat, the Socialist Labour Party stood in 15 seats, Liberal Democrats 10, British National Party 5 and there were 2 candidates from the Freedom Party.
The candidates from the British National Party and the Freedom Party caused controversy, with the UNISON trade union calling on its members to vote against them and boycott any councillors from those parties. A local Labour Member of Parliament Tom Watson meanwhile said that property prices would fall if any candidates from the British National Party were elected.

## Election result

The results saw the British National Party win 2 seats on the council for the first time. The British National Party's John Salvage gained Princes End by 37 votes and David Watkins took Great Bridge by nearly 100 votes. Meanwhile, Labour held control of the council despite dropping seats. The Conservatives gained 1 seat, while the Liberal Democrats stayed on 6 seats.
The first council meeting following the election on 20 May saw a protest by union members against the presence of a British National Party councillor.
Sandwell Local Election Result 2003 :
| Party | Seats | Gains | Losses | Net gain/loss | Seats % | Votes % | Votes | +/− |
| Labour | 17 | 1 | 4 | -3 | 70.8 | 47.0 | 27,739 | -4.6% |
| Conservative | 3 | 2 | 1 | +1 | 12.5 | 28.6 | 16,897 | +1.1% |
| Liberal Democrats | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 8.3 | 10.6 | 6,261 | -0.6% |
| BNP | 2 | 2 | 0 | +2 | 8.3 | 5.9 | 3,483 | +4.5% |
| Socialist Labour | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4.2 | 2,487 | +1.1% |
| Freedom Party | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2.1 | 1,219 | +0.4% |
| 2003 Community Party | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1.2 | 732 | +1.2% |
| Green | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.3 | 150 | +0.3% |
| UKIP | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 | 69 | +0.1% |

## Ward results

Abbey :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Robert Piper | 1,544 | 56.1 | +1.8 |
| | Conservative | Ewart Johnson | 638 | 23.2 | −3.2 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Roger Prior | 490 | 17.8 | +3.3 |
| | Socialist Labour | Jasvinder Singh | 81 | 2.9 | −1.9 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 906 | 32.9 | +5.0 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 2,753 | 31.7 | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | | |
Blackheath :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Robert Price | 1,200 | 51.9 | −2.2 |
| | Conservative | Mary Docker | 1,056 | 45.7 | +9.5 |
| | Socialist Labour | Rajinder Singh | 54 | 2.3 | +2.3 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 144 | 6.2 | −11.8 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 2,310 | 25.7 | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | | |
Bristnall :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Richard Young | 1,292 | 56.0 | +2.0 |
| | Conservative | John McHard | 896 | 38.8 | −0.8 |
| | Socialist Labour | Sukhjinder Clair | 119 | 5.2 | −1.2 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 396 | 17.2 | +2.8 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 2,307 | 24.9 | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | | |
Charlemont :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Anthony Ward | 1,153 | 40.3 | +1.6 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Anthony Underhill | 922 | 32.2 | −3.3 |
| | Labour | Victoria Handy | 740 | 25.9 | +0.2 |
| | Socialist Labour | Nirmala Devi | 47 | 1.6 | +1.6 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 231 | 8.1 | +4.9 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 2,862 | 32.1 | |
| | Conservative gain from Labour | Conservative gain from Labour | Swing | | |
Cradley Heath and Old Hill :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | John Southall | 1,316 | 61.2 | −0.9 |
| | Conservative | Susan Bennett | 835 | 38.8 | +0.9 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 481 | 22.4 | −1.7 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 2,151 | 23.1 | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | | |
Friar Park :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Geoffrey Lewis | 935 | 59.9 | −2.8 |
| | Conservative | Gaynor Skeldon | 444 | 28.4 | +0.8 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Yvonne Reed | 183 | 11.7 | +2.0 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 491 | 31.4 | −3.6 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 1,562 | 19.2 | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | | |
Great Barr :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Liberal Democrats | Mary Wilson | 1,188 | 40.9 | −3.5 |
| | Conservative | Robert White | 942 | 32.4 | +5.4 |
| | Labour | Sharron Devonport | 774 | 26.7 | −1.8 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 246 | 8.5 | −7.4 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 2,904 | 29.4 | |
| | Liberal Democrats gain from Conservative | Liberal Democrats gain from Conservative | Swing | | |
Great Bridge :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | BNP | David Watkins | 772 | 31.5 | +31.5 |
| | 2003 Community Party | Fred Perry | 732 | 29.9 | −5.1 |
| | Labour | Bob Patel | 674 | 27.5 | −19.9 |
| | Conservative | Diane Meacham | 273 | 11.1 | −6.4 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 40 | 1.6 | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 2,451 | 25.9 | |
| | BNP gain from Labour | BNP gain from Labour | Swing | | |
Greets Green and Lyng :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Robert Badham | 1,024 | 54.5 | −4.0 |
| | Conservative | Rosemarie Campbell | 537 | 28.6 | +5.0 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Philip Roberts | 317 | 16.9 | −1.0 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 487 | 25.9 | −9.0 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 1,878 | 24.9 | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | | |
Hateley Heath :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | John Blyth | 930 | 44.0 | −4.2 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Rachel Cheeseman | 865 | 41.0 | +2.1 |
| | Conservative | Mark Elliott | 270 | 12.8 | −0.1 |
| | Socialist Labour | Chuhar Singh | 47 | 2.2 | +2.2 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 65 | 3.1 | −6.2 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 2,112 | 23.1 | |
| | Labour gain from Liberal Democrats | Labour gain from Liberal Democrats | Swing | | |
Langley :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Martin Prestidge | 1,395 | 48.4 | −6.9 |
| | Conservative | Roland Hill | 750 | 26.0 | −5.6 |
| | BNP | Alan Hipkiss | 643 | 22.3 | +22.3 |
| | Socialist Labour | Bahadur Shankar | 93 | 3.2 | −0.1 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 645 | 22.4 | −1.3 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 2,881 | 30.3 | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | | |
Newton :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Liberal Democrats | Joyce Underhill | 1,341 | 44.6 | −0.6 |
| | Labour | Simon Hackett | 1,232 | 40.9 | +3.0 |
| | Conservative | Valerie Ward | 386 | 12.8 | −2.4 |
| | Socialist Labour | Baldeesh Singh | 50 | 1.7 | +0.0 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 109 | 3.6 | −3.6 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 3,009 | 33.6 | |
| | Liberal Democrats hold | Liberal Democrats hold | Swing | | |
Oldbury :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Mahboob Hussain | 1,619 | 55.1 | +3.2 |
| | Conservative | David Hadley | 756 | 25.7 | +3.9 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Christopher Reed | 291 | 9.9 | −2.7 |
| | Socialist Labour | Atma Matharu | 270 | 9.2 | −4.6 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 863 | 29.4 | −0.6 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 2,936 | 35.8 | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | | |
Old Warley :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Terri Grainger | 1,453 | 54.2 | +10.6 |
| | Labour | Brian Caddick | 1,228 | 45.8 | +4.4 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 225 | 8.4 | +6.2 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 2,681 | 31.9 | |
| | Conservative gain from Labour | Conservative gain from Labour | Swing | | |
Princes End :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | BNP | John Salvage | 754 | 37.0 | +12.7 |
| | Labour | Elaine Giles | 717 | 35.1 | −5.5 |
| | Conservative | Margaret Dixon | 365 | 17.9 | −6.8 |
| | Freedom Party | Alison Aitken-Jones | 135 | 6.6 | +6.6 |
| | UKIP | Kevin Walker | 69 | 3.4 | +2.4 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 37 | 1.9 | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 2,040 | 21.9 | |
| | BNP gain from Labour | BNP gain from Labour | Swing | | |
Rowley :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Iris Boucher | 1,398 | 60.3 | −5.4 |
| | Conservative | Joanne Hadley | 859 | 37.1 | +2.8 |
| | Socialist Labour | Amarjit Takhar | 61 | 2.6 | +2.6 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 539 | 23.3 | −8.0 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 2,318 | 24.5 | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | | |
St. Pauls :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Bawa Dhallu | 1,467 | 52.6 | −16.2 |
| | Socialist Labour | Hari Randhawa | 860 | 30.8 | +12.1 |
| | Conservative | Manjit Lall | 461 | 16.5 | +4.0 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 607 | 21.8 | −28.3 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 2,788 | 33.5 | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | | |
Smethwick :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Keith Davies | 1,258 | 60.9 | −16.2 |
| | Conservative | John Patterson | 563 | 27.3 | +4.4 |
| | Socialist Labour | Boota Singh | 243 | 11.8 | +11.8 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 695 | 33.7 | −20.5 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 2,064 | 24.4 | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | | |
Soho and Victoria :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Darren Cooper | 995 | 73.1 | +0.3 |
| | Conservative | Salahadin Adrwish | 203 | 14.9 | +3.7 |
| | Socialist Labour | Malcolm Connigale | 163 | 12.0 | −4.1 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 792 | 58.2 | +1.5 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 1,361 | 27.7 | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | | |
Tipton Green :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Syeda Khatun | 1,724 | 42.0 | −3.7 |
| | Freedom Party | Stephen Edwards | 1,084 | 26.4 | +2.3 |
| | Conservative | Ian Davies | 633 | 15.4 | +5.0 |
| | BNP | Terence Taylor | 526 | 12.8 | +5.3 |
| | Socialist Labour | Surinder Sandhu | 134 | 3.3 | −0.2 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 640 | 15.6 | −6.0 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 4,101 | 34.1 | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | | |
Tividale :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Maria Crompton | 1,079 | 41.4 | −9.0 |
| | BNP | Carl Butler | 788 | 30.2 | +30.2 |
| | Conservative | Steven Hockley | 459 | 17.6 | −10.7 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Diane Gorton | 281 | 10.8 | +0.5 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 291 | 11.2 | −10.9 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 2,607 | 27.2 | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | | |
Wednesbury North :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Elaine Costigan | 1,429 | 62.6 | −6.0 |
| | Labour | Peter Allen | 702 | 30.8 | −0.6 |
| | Green | John Macefield | 150 | 6.6 | +6.6 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 727 | 31.9 | −5.3 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 2,281 | 24.8 | |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |
Wednesbury South :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | George Turton | 1,158 | 51.9 | −6.8 |
| | Conservative | Jean Nugent | 943 | 42.2 | +0.9 |
| | Socialist Labour | Karam Singh | 131 | 5.9 | +5.9 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 215 | 9.6 | −7.9 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 2,232 | 24.7 | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | | |
West Bromwich Central :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Mohinder Tagger | 1,338 | 54.7 | −14.2 |
| | Conservative | Norman Lawley | 593 | 24.2 | +7.7 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Sandra Berisford | 383 | 15.6 | +4.9 |
| | Socialist Labour | Barinder Sandhu | 134 | 5.5 | +1.7 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 745 | 30.4 | −22.0 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 2,448 | 30.3 | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | | |