MP resigns borough council seat ahead of elections

The Labour MP for Amber Valley has stepped down from her seat on the borough council ahead of the local elections.

Linsey Farnsworth was elected to Amber Valley Borough Council for the Kilburn, Denby, Holbrook and Horsley ward as a Labour councillor in May 2023.

The former solicitor was then elected to Parliament in the general election the following year.

She told the BBC she was resigning now so a by-election can be held on the same day as Derbyshire County Council elections, which would "save the public purse thousands of pounds".

"I was honoured to serve as the first Labour councillor in over 20 years to represent Kilburn, Denby, Holbrook and Horsley - and to represent the ward where I live," she told the BBC.

"When I was elected to Parliament, I renounced my councillor allowance from day one.

"And ⁠I have now resigned my borough seat so the by-election can tie in with the county council elections - saving the public purse thousands of pounds compared to running a costly standalone contest.

"⁠It has been a privilege to serve as their councillor and I want to reassure my constituents I will continue to support them as their MP, as well as people across Amber Valley."

Councillors received an email informing them of the vacancy.

A by-election will be scheduled once the council has received a written request to do so from two local government electors from within the local authority area.

The electors can be registered anywhere in Amber Valley and not solely within the ward itself.

The minimum timescale required to hold a by-election is 25 working days.

Councillors were told by officers, in an email seen by the BBC, that in order to hold the by-election on 1 May, the same day as the county council elections, the request must be received no later than 17:00 next Tuesday, 25 March.

The by-election will be held at a later date if the request is not received by then.

A spokesperson for Amber Valley Borough Council said: "We can confirm that Linsey Farnsworth MP has resigned her seat on the borough council today.

"We understand that the timing for her resignation was chosen so that the forthcoming by-election would coincide with the Derbyshire County Council elections on 1 May."

The Mid-Derbyshire Labour MP Jonathan Davies remains a councillor in Chesterfield.

Other MPs elected in 2024 who remain councillors are Baggy Shanker, the Derby South MP, and John Whitby, the Derbyshire Dales MP.

Both Labour MPs sit on Derby City Council but are under local pressure to resign their seats.

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