![](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/britain\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/1_JS341742630.jpg\")
<\/p>\nShah ruled out \u2018any working agreement\u2019 with groups that \u2018have run divisive and toxic campaigns\u2019.<\/p>\n
22:06, 10 May 2026Updated 07:20, 11 May 2026<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Oldham Council Leader Arooj Shah . <\/p>\n
The leader of Oldham Council, Arooj Shah, has confirmed she will be stepping down from her post before the end of the month. Her departure could mark the end of 15 years of Labour<\/a> control at the local authority, following a disastrous election night for the group last week.<\/p>\n Labour lost nine of the 12 seats it was defending for the May 7 vote, leaving the group with just 18 members. Reform gained 13 councillors, propelling it from one of the smallest to the second largest group in the council.<\/p>\n And The Oldham<\/a> Group, an association of independents representing some of Oldham\u2019s majority-Asian central wards, now has 10 members.<\/p>\n Click here<\/a> to get the biggest stories straight to your inbox in our Daily Newsletter<\/p>\n The results mean the council\u2019s political makeup has effectively been fractured in three directions. Any group hoping to gain control of the council by the local authority\u2019s first full meeting on May 20 will therefore have to negotiate the support of other groups.<\/p>\n But in a statement published on Sunday, May 10, council leader Shah ruled out \u2018any working agreement\u2019 with groups that \u2018have run divisive and toxic campaigns\u2019.<\/p>\n Coun Shah added: \u201cAs a consequence, I will cease being the Leader of the Council on the morning of the annual council meeting.\u201d<\/p>\n This means the Lib Dems<\/a>, Conservatives<\/a>, and remaining six independents will have to choose whether to throw their group behind The Oldham Group, Reform UK, or a Labour group under new leadership to form a working cabinet. Because of the political and personal divisions within the council, it could prove difficult to form a stable long-term majority.<\/p>\n Coun Shah\u2019s full statement reads as follows: \u201cThe result of the local elections in Oldham mirrors Labour\u2019s losses nationally and leaves a council where no party is able to command a viable majority administration.<\/p>\n Get MEN Premium now for just \u00a31 HERE<\/a> \u2013 or get involved in our WhatsApp group by clicking HERE<\/a><\/p>\n \u201cWe want to thank everyone who voted Labour across the borough, and returned three Labour councillors in Chadderton<\/a> Central, Medlock Vale, and Werneth.<\/p>\n \u201cWhile Labour remains marginally the largest single party, we have to take not that the results across the borough clearly showed support for the other parties. Both Reform, led by former Conservative Lewis Quidd, and The Oldham Group, led by former Conservative Kamran Ghafoor, gained seats and are now the second and third largest parties respectively.<\/p>\n \u201cThe Labour Group has met to discuss its position following the election, and I can confirm that we will not seek any working arrangement, either through a coalition or supply agreement, with parties that have run divisive and toxic campaigns, effectively carving up the borough through identity and grievance politics that go against our values.<\/p>\n \u201cIt is now for those parties to put forward proposals for how they intend to run Oldham Council, reflecting the mandate they have received from voters.<\/p>\n