The Labour Group are delighted to welcome newly elected Councillor Bella Sankey to their ranks, after her successful by-election campaign to become the new representative for Wish ward.

Cllr Sankey won the Wish by-election, held on 8 December 2022, with 1519 votes (a winning margin of 763 votes), following the sad passing of long-serving Conservative Councillor, Gary Peltzer Dunn.

The swing from Conservative to Labour, securing 58% of the vote share, is not only a testament to Bella as a candidate, and the community campaign she ran, but also a sign of residents seeking positive change.

Labour Group co-leaders, Cllr Carmen Appich and Cllr John Allcock said:

“Bella will be a fantastic councillor for the city and champion for the residents of Wish.

“We’re delighted to welcome her to the Labour Group and we know that her talents and expertise will be of great value to the residents she now serves, and to the city-at-large.”

Newly elected Labour Councillor Bella Sankey said:

“I want to thank Wish residents for putting their trust and confidence in me and electing me as their representative.

“I’ve heard their frustrations both with the Green Administration in Brighton & Hove and the neglectful Tory Government at Westminster.

“I am going to focus on getting basic services, such as street cleanliness, back up to scratch for residents, as well as working with my Labour colleagues to tackle issues from rouge landlords to mental health support across the City.

“Labour’s victory in Wish today lays the foundation for the City-wide elections next May. We will be campaigning to take overall control of the City Council so we can work to help make our City become fairer, more sustainable and a place where every person can live with dignity and thrive.”