SHEFFIELD: Sheffield City Council leader Tom Hunt says ‘people have backed our plan’ today

Following a huge day for Sheffield Labour at the local election, the council leader says people have backed their “positive and ambitious” plan for the city.

Sheffield Labour have gained six seats and lost one (with holding the other seats they already had) in this set of local elections making them the clear winners of the day.

Cllr Tom Hunt, the leader of Sheffield City Council, told the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS): “I’m really pleased by today’s results. The Labour Party has made a gain of five seats, we are taking seats from the Tories, the Liberal Democrats and The Greens.

“We put forward a positive and ambitious plan for our city; better public transport, bringing buses under public control, more affordable homes, help with the cost of living crisis, and backing the next generation to succeed.

“People have backed our plan today and I’m really delighted that we have seen some of our fantastic councillors elected.”

Despite the strong day from Labour, Sheffield still has “no overall control”. 

Cllr Hunt admitted that Sheffeld had a “complex political situation” and he has been working (as a leader of his party) for a year to bring a real change and transform the council.

He added Labour were now “comfortably” the largest party on Sheffield City Council but they would still work with other parties in the interest of residents.

In the next year, Cllr Hunt said he was looking forward to working with potentially a Labour mayor in South Yorkshire in Oliver Coppard (the count for the mayoral election is on May 4) and getting “those affordable homes” built.

He added they were focusing on a change of government later this year.

Cllr Hunt said people in Sheffield were crying out loud for a general election as the Tories were “out of time and out of ideas”.