Conservatives take control at Enfield Council as Greens stand aside

Enfield Council has a new leader after Alessandro Georgiou was voted in to head a minority Conservative administration on Wednesday evening, following three weeks of post-election uncertainty.

The Tories had fallen a single seat short of a majority in the 7th May local elections, leaving five newly elected Green councillors holding the balance of power. Negotiations with both Labour and the Conservatives failed to produce a formal coalition agreement, meaning the leadership vote came down to the wire.

When it did, the Greens chose to abstain rather than back either candidate, handing Georgiou and his 31-strong group the council leadership by default. Labour councillors reacted with visible anger, shouting “shame” during the proceedings.

Speaking after his election, Georgiou framed his first priorities around two flagship commitments. He said his opening act as leader would be to write formally to the government and the Mayor of London withdrawing Enfield from the Crews Hill and Chase Park new town process - a proposed 21,000-home development that the Conservatives, Reform and Greens had campaigned against.

His second move, he announced, would be to inform Tottenham Hotspur that they can no longer proceed with plans to develop Whitewebbs Park for a women’s training facility. Spurs had secured planning permission for the site last year, but the 25-year lease required to proceed had never been signed by the outgoing Labour administration, leaving the door open for the incoming Tories to block it.

Transparency, Georgiou added, would be central to how he runs the council. “We won’t be perfect,” he acknowledged.

Former Labour leader Ergin Erbil hit out at the Greens, accusing them of reaching a quiet arrangement with the Tories that allowed a Conservative administration to take power through the back door.

The Greens pushed back firmly on that characterisation, with group leader Sarah Jons insisting there was no coalition or alliance involved and that her councillors were elected to scrutinise decisions and represent residents – not to play political games.

Elsewhere, veteran councillor Emma Supple has been appointed Mayor of Enfield for 2026/27. Supple is a familiar face in the borough, having spent around thirty years involved with the Girlguiding movement locally.