Fran Whymark revealed as new leader of Broadland Tory group

Fran Whymark, who has been a councillor for a decade, has been selected as the new leader of Broadland District Council’s (BDC) Conservative group. 

It comes after the previous chief of the party, Shaun Vincent, lost his Plumstead seat to the Green’s James Harvey in the recent local elections. 

Mr Whymark was unavailable for comment, but he issued a statement following his selection. 

The Horizon centre, the future home of Broadland District Council (Image: Copypright Mike Page, All Rights ReservedBefore any use is made of this picture, including dispaly, publication, broadcast, syn)

He said: “This is a new time for BDC and going forward I would like to build bridges and positive relationships with our partners.  

“We will all have to work together to ensure BDC remains in a strong position to continue delivering the high-quality services residents have come to expect and rely on.” 

While the Tories are still the largest group on the council – with 21 of the 47 seats following recent local elections - it is three short of the 24 members needed for a majority.  

All the opposition groups have ruled out working with the Tories. 

Mr Whymark was picked by the local association at an annual group meeting held on Tuesday evening. 

The Conservative, who represents Wroxham, has been a member of the council since 2014. 

The meeting was brought forward from Saturday partly to help allow negotiations between Mr Whymark and other group leaders to take place. 

The Liberal Democrats, Labour and the Greens have all ruled out working with the Tories, meaning it is unlikely that he will be able to form a working administration and get votes through. 

Serious discussions between the opposition groups to form an alliance are not yet fully underway. 

The council is currently made up of 21 Conservatives, 14 Liberal Democrats, eight Labour members and four Green.