OFFICIAL: Brondesbury Park by-election announced after resignation of Cllr Gill - polling day May 6th

 From the Brent Council website LINK

A by-election for a vacant council position in the electoral ward of Brondesbury Park in the London Borough of Brent will be held on Thursday 6 May 2021.

This follows the resignation of former Councillor Kieron Gill who informed Carolyn Downs, Returning Officer and Chief Executive of Brent Council, of his decision to step down earlier this week.

The by-election will take place on the same day as the Mayor of London and London Assembly Elections on 6 May, meaning eligible voters in Brondesbury Park ward will be voting in four elections on the same day.

Apply early if you want to vote by post

Voters have a range of options for casting their ballot – in person, by post or by appointing someone they trust to vote in their place, known as a proxy vote.

As with the London elections, Brondesbury Park residents are encouraged to apply early if they want to vote by post, which is the easiest and safest way to vote during the COVID-19 pandemic.

To apply to vote by post, residents must download an application form, complete and sign it and then return it by email to Electoral.Services@brent.gov.uk or by post to Electoral Services, Brent Civic Centre, Engineers Way, Wembley, HA9 0FJ.

All applications to vote by post must be received by the council by 5pm on Tuesday 20 April.

Paper application forms can also be requested by emailing Electoral.Services@brent.gov.uk or by calling 020 8937 1372.

Find out more about voting by post.

Register to vote

In order to register to vote by post, residents must first be on the electoral register. The deadline to register to vote in time for the May elections is midnight on Monday 19 April.

It takes just five minutes to apply online.

This is particularly important for anyone who has recently turned 18 or moved address.

You can vote in local elections if you are:

• A British citizen - excluding overseas electors;
• A qualifying Commonwealth citizen (including Cyprus and Malta);
• From Ireland;
• A European Union citizen.

Nominations to stand in by-election

The deadline for nominations to stand in this by-election is 4pm on Thursday 8 April. View election notices.

Brondesbury Park Councillor Kieron Gill has resigned

 

Cllr Kieron Gill (Labour - Brondesbury Park)

Reliable sources confirmed tonight that Cllr Kieron Gill who represented Brondesbury Park  ward for Labour has resigned. As yet no reason has been given for the resignation.

Cllr Gill was one of the new cohort of councillors elected in May 2018. Labour made a clean sweep of the ward that previously had Conservative representation.

Cllr Gill made a number of interventions beginning in 2018 moving a motion in Council condemning the deaths of 130 unarmed Gazans at the hands of the Israeli forces. LINK

In 2019 Gill seconded the motion declaring a Climate Emergency in Brent which continues to make an impact on council policy. LINK

In 2020 Cllr Gill hit the headlines when he resigned from the Labour Group's Task Force on Democracy  and went public with his criticism of the Chair of the Task Force, Cllr Thomas Stephens (now in the Cabinet) for producing a 'soft report' and urging his fellow councillors to reject the 'weak offer.' LINK

Finally in February of this year Cllr Gill abstained on the Labour budget. LINK

It appears that another councillor with a streak of independence has gone.

It is likely that the by-election caused by the resignation will be held on May 6th which is the polling day for the GLA and Mayoral election.

The contest is likely to be close as it was in Barnhill and Alperton.