Lambeth Council has elected its first Green Party administration, with Councillor Martin Abrams confirmed as the new Leader of the Council after Liberal Democrat support at the continuation of the Annual Meeting on Monday evening.
The Lambeth leadership change follows the May 7 local elections, when all 63 seats across Lambeth’s 25 wards were contested. The Greens now hold 27 seats, Labour has 26, the Liberal Democrats have eight, and two casual vacancies are due to be filled through by-elections on 9 July.
Martin Abrams confirmed as council leader
Councillor Martin Abrams will lead the new administration, with Councillor Ciara Alleyne and Councillor Natalie Kane appointed as Deputy Leaders of Lambeth Council.
Cllr Alleyne will take responsibility for Environment, Climate Crisis and Transport. Cllr Kane’s brief covers Inclusion, Democracy and Culture.
Cllr Abrams said he was “honoured” to lead the Green group and to have been elected Leader of Lambeth Council. He said the administration would seek to make the council “more transparent and accountable to local people”.
The new Cabinet also includes Cllr Pete Elliott for Housing, Cllr Scott Ainslie for Planning and Development, Built Environment and Public Realm, and Cllr Zvikomborero Chihoro for Finance and Community Wealth Building.
Other appointments include Cllr Michael Chessum for Economy, Cost of Living and Empowered Communities, Cllr Jeremy Isaacs and Cllr Sam Dorney-Smith in a job-share for Health and Adult Social Care, Cllr Alice Weavers for Children and Young People, and Cllr Jonathan Bartley for Safer, Thriving Neighbourhoods.
A narrow council chamber after the May election
The Greens’ administration has been agreed in a closely balanced council chamber. With 27 Green councillors and 26 Labour councillors, the Liberal Democrats’ eight seats are now significant to how the council conducts business.
The arrangement places Lambeth among a small number of London boroughs where Green councillors are taking senior executive control. A similar shift has also taken place in north London, where Green leadership in Haringey has changed the balance of local decision-making.
Labour’s Lambeth group will be led by Cllr Claire Holland, with Cllrs Danny Adilypour and Nanda Manley-Browne named as deputy leaders. For the Liberal Democrats, Cllr Matthew Bryant has been named group leader, with Cllr Tam Langley as deputy.
The earlier part of the Annual Meeting, held on Wednesday 27 May, saw Cllr Paul Valentine named Mayor of Lambeth, the borough’s first Green mayor. Liberal Democrat councillor Judy Best was named Deputy Mayor.
Hybrid Cabinet committees planned for scrutiny
Lambeth’s Annual Council meeting approved plans to move towards a hybrid Cabinet Committee model within the existing system.
The council says the model will introduce new committees intended to strengthen scrutiny, increase cross-party working and give backbench councillors from all parties a larger role in decisions made by Cabinet.
Cllr Abrams said the change would give “greater prominence to scrutiny” and empower ward councillors over decisions affecting their local communities.
For residents, the governance change matters because Cabinet decisions shape services including housing, planning, transport, public realm, social care, children’s services and local safety. A committee model may give more councillors a formal route to question proposals before they become policy, though the exact practical effect will depend on how the committees operate and how much influence they are given.
By-elections and committee appointments still ahead
Two casual vacancies remain on Lambeth Council and are scheduled to be filled through by-elections on 9 July. Those contests could affect the political arithmetic in the chamber, although the Green administration has already been agreed with Liberal Democrat support.
A wider set of committee appointments was also approved at the Annual Meeting. The council said those appointments can be viewed through Lambeth’s modern.gov committee system.
The new administration now begins work with a Cabinet covering housing, finance, planning, climate, transport, social care, children’s services, culture and neighbourhood safety.
Source: London Borough of Lambeth
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This report is based on Lambeth Council’s published account of the Annual Meeting and the stated council composition after the May 7 election.
- Checked the named Leader, Deputy Leaders and Cabinet portfolios against the source text.
- Checked the council seat totals and the two pending vacancies stated in the source.
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- London Borough of Lambeth
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- 2026-06-07 17:50
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