# 1998 Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council election

The 1998 Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council election took place on 7 May 1998 to elect members of Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council in the West Midlands, England. One third of the council was up for election and the council stayed under no overall control.

## Campaign

Before the election the Conservative party held 17 seats, compared to 16 for Labour and 12 Liberal Democrats. However the council was run by the Labour party who governed with an agreement with the Liberal Democrats. With the split in seats between the parties the council was expected to remain without any party having a majority with Labour defending 6 seats, compared to 5 for the Conservatives and 4 for the Liberal Democrats. Meanwhile, the independent candidates who were defending a seat in Shirley South and 2 seats in Shirley West ward were expected to come under pressure. During the campaign another independent councillor Trevor Eames, who was not defending a seat in the election, resigned from the council after being jailed for 7 years causing a by-election to be held later in the summer.

## Election result

The results saw all 3 independents who were defending seats defeated, reducing the number of Independent Ratepayers on the council to 2. Labour gained 1 seat from the independents in Shirley West, while the Conservative took the other 2 in Shirley South and Shirley West. The Conservatives also won a seat from the Liberal Democrats in Packwood ward, with the former leader of the council Ken Meeson being returned to the council. Overall turnout in the election was 29%, varying between a high of 40% and a low of 15% in Smithswood ward.
Following the election the Conservatives elected a new group leader, Ted Richards, after the previous leader Ron Herd stepped down. However, despite holding 20 seats, compared to 17 for Labour and 11 for the Liberal Democrats, the Conservatives remained in opposition, with Labour running the council with support from the Liberal Democrats.
Solihull Local Election Result 1998 :
| Party | Seats | Gains | Losses | Net gain/loss | Seats % | Votes % | Votes | +/− |
| Conservative | 8 | 3 | 0 | +3 | 44.4 | 45.0 | 20,883 | +7.9% |
| Labour | 7 | 1 | 0 | +1 | 38.9 | 25.4 | 11,809 | -1.5% |
| Liberal Democrats | 3 | 0 | 1 | -1 | 16.7 | 23.3 | 10,831 | -2.4% |
| Independent Ratepayers & Residents | 0 | 0 | 2 | -2 | 0.0 | 4.6 | 2,132 | -3.4% |
| Independent | 0 | 0 | 1 | -1 | 0.0 | 1.7 | 767 | +1.2% |
This result had the following consequences for the total number of seats on the council after the elections :
| Party | Party | Previous council | New council |
| | Conservatives | 17 | 20 |
| | Labour | 16 | 17 |
| | Liberal Democrat | 12 | 11 |
| | Independent Ratepayers & Residents | 5 | 3 |
| | Independent | 1 | 0 |
| Total | Total | 51 | 51 | 51 |
| Working majority | Working majority | -17 | -11 |

## Ward results

Bickenhill :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | James Ryan | 2,036 | 58.5 | +21.4 |
| | Conservative | Robert Sleigh | 1,278 | 36.7 | −11.6 |
| | Liberal Democrats | D. Moore | 167 | 4.8 | −1.8 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 758 | 21.8 | +10.6 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 3,481 | 35.3 | +0.7 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | +16.5 | |
Castle Bromwich :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Beryll Kellie | 1,717 | 62.1 | +2.4 |
| | Labour | Ann Wood | 799 | 28.9 | −2.5 |
| | Liberal Democrats | John Knight | 251 | 9.1 | +0.1 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 918 | 33.2 | +5.0 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 2,767 | 29.5 | −8.1 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | +2.5 | |
Chelmsley Wood :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Robert Reed | 883 | 69.6 | −3.6 |
| | Conservative | Graham Juniper | 280 | 22.1 | +3.2 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Olive Hogg | 105 | 8.3 | +0.4 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 603 | 47.6 | −6.8 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 1,268 | 16.6 | −5.2 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | -3.4 | |
Elmdon :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Sheila Brookes | 1,431 | 51.0 | −4.0 |
| | Conservative | John Bramham | 1,153 | 41.1 | +4.9 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Barbara Harber | 221 | 7.9 | −1.0 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 278 | 9.9 | −8.9 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 2,805 | 36.1 | −7.4 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | -4.4 | |
Fordbridge :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Arthur Harper | 618 | 68.4 | −2.2 |
| | Conservative | Neil Archer | 209 | 23.1 | +5.8 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Bernard Wright | 77 | 8.5 | +1.5 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 409 | 45.2 | −8.0 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 904 | 14.4 | −6.6 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | -4.0 | |
Kingshurst :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Jeffrey Potts | 526 | 44.4 | −20.9 |
| | Independent Residents | Brian Carter | 383 | 32.3 | +32.3 |
| | Conservative | D. Cleghorn | 227 | 19.1 | −7.0 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Christopher Hayes | 50 | 4.2 | −4.4 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 143 | 12.1 | −27.1 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 1,186 | 20.9 | −5.0 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | -26.6 | |
Knowle :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Diana Holl-Allen | 1,792 | 62.3 | −1.4 |
| | Labour | David George | 635 | 22.1 | +9.3 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Brenda Chapple | 448 | 15.6 | −7.9 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 1,157 | 40.2 | −0.1 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 2,875 | 32.4 | −5.0 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | -5.3 | |
Lyndon :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Liberal Democrats | Norman Chapple | 1,331 | 56.4 | −1.6 |
| | Conservative | Neill Watts | 677 | 28.7 | +6.3 |
| | Labour | John Kimberley | 351 | 14.9 | −4.6 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 654 | 27.7 | −7.9 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 2,359 | 30.3 | −7.1 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | -3.9 | |
Meriden :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Peter Lea | 1,990 | 68.9 | +31.0 |
| | Labour | Kenneth Harrop | 551 | 19.1 | −3.9 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Richard Morris | 347 | 12.0 | −0.6 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 1,439 | 49.8 | +38.5 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 2,888 | 32.6 | −8.6 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | +17.4 | |
Olton :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Liberal Democrats | John Windmill | 1,710 | 51.9 | −0.9 |
| | Conservative | Donald Jones | 1,145 | 34.8 | −5.1 |
| | Labour | Donald Bargery | 283 | 8.6 | +1.3 |
| | Independent Ratepayers | David Bayliss | 156 | 4.7 | +4.7 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 565 | 17.1 | +4.2 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 3,294 | 36.4 | −6.9 |
| | Liberal Democrats hold | Liberal Democrats hold | Swing | +2.1 | |
Packwood :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Kenneth Meeson | 2,119 | 51.7 | +5.2 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Peter Lee | 1,783 | 43.5 | −4.8 |
| | Labour | Frederick Nash | 199 | 4.9 | −0.4 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 336 | 8.2 | +6.4 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 4,101 | 40.0 | −3.9 |
| | Conservative gain from Liberal Democrats | Conservative gain from Liberal Democrats | Swing | +5.0 | |
Shirley East :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Liberal Democrats | Michael Southcombe | 1,547 | 47.7 | −2.0 |
| | Conservative | Susan Rosten | 1,240 | 38.2 | +1.3 |
| | Labour | James Burman | 321 | 9.9 | −3.5 |
| | Independent Ratepayers | Robert Gill | 135 | 4.2 | +4.2 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 307 | 9.5 | −3.3 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 3,243 | 35.1 | −6.8 |
| | Liberal Democrats hold | Liberal Democrats hold | Swing | -1.6 | |
Shirley South :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | David Evans | 1,444 | 40.5 | +40.5 |
| | Independent Ratepayers | Richard Jackson | 1,114 | 31.3 | −30.3 |
| | Labour | Bernard McElholm | 683 | 19.2 | −3.8 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Eric Widger | 323 | 9.1 | −6.4 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 330 | 9.3 | −29.4 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 3,564 | 27.1 | −2.9 |
| | Conservative gain from Independent Ratepayers | Conservative gain from Independent Ratepayers | Swing | +35.4 |
Shirley West :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Richard Lewis | 1,040 | 32.7 | +32.7 |
| | Labour | Peter Metcalfe | 844 | 26.5 | +0.1 |
| | Conservative | Stuart Davis | 822 | | |
| | Independent | Brenda Otton | 767 | 24.1 | +24.1 |
| | Independent | Jean Duddy | 569 | | |
| | Labour | Marcus Brain | 541 | | |
| | Independent Ratepayers | John Rogers | 344 | 10.8 | −52.0 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Linda Whitlock | 189 | 5.9 | −4.9 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 196 | 6.2 | −30.3 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 3,184 | 29.6 | −2.5 |
| | Conservative gain from Independent | Conservative gain from Independent | Swing | +16.2 | |
| | Labour gain from Independent Ratepayers | Labour gain from Independent Ratepayers | Swing | |
Silhill :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Sheila Pittaway | 1,704 | 47.4 | −0.5 |
| | Liberal Democrats | David Puckering | 1,504 | 41.8 | +4.0 |
| | Labour | Richard Sumner | 389 | 10.8 | −3.4 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 200 | 5.6 | −4.5 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 3,597 | 36.6 | −4.5 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | -2.2 | |
Smith's Wood :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Hugh Hendry | 861 | 70.1 | −3.8 |
| | Conservative | Timothy Vernon | 261 | 21.3 | +3.8 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Jennifer Wright | 106 | 8.6 | −0.1 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 600 | 48.9 | −7.6 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 1,228 | 15.3 | −7.3 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | -3.8 | |
St. Alphege :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Kathleen Wild | 2,607 | 70.9 | +7.3 |
| | Liberal Democrats | J. Herbert | 672 | 18.3 | −5.4 |
| | Labour | Arthur Brill | 399 | 10.8 | −1.9 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 1,935 | 52.6 | +12.7 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 3,678 | 33.1 | −5.4 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | +6.3 | |

## By-elections between 1998 and 1999

Shirley South by-election 16 July 1998 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | James Boy | 1,070 | 44.8 | +4.3 |
| | Independent Ratepayer | John Rogers | 612 | 25.6 | −5.7 |
| | Labour | Bernard McElholm | 437 | 18.3 | −0.9 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Eric Widger | 176 | 7.4 | −1.7 |
| | Democratic Reform Association | Brenda Otton | 92 | 3.8 | +3.8 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 458 | 19.2 | +9.9 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 2,387 | 17.7 | −9.4 |
| | Conservative gain from Independent Ratepayers | Conservative gain from Independent Ratepayers | Swing | +5.0 |