Plymouth City Council Conservative leader Richard Bingley resigns following Armada Way controversy

The leader of Plymouth City Council has resigned following a controversial scheme that saw more dozens of trees felled.

Conservative councillor Richard Bingley has stepped down from his post after signing off on a redevelopment plan that saw around a hundred trees cut down on Armada Way.

Bingley has only been in post for a year but has announced his decision this afternoon (22 March), according to reports on PlymouthLive.

The politician will step back from leading the council and being leader of the Conservative group in the city on Monday (27 March).

It followed a vote of no confidence being tabled by the Green Party on Monday.

The challenge to Bingley's leadership comes after more than 100 trees were slashed under the cover of darkness on Tuesday 14 March. The work was done as part of a scheme to redevelop Armada Way.

But campaign group Save the Trees of Armada Way, (STRAW), managed to get the High Court to serve an injunction.

This led to the operation being paused at 1am but by then only 12 trees remained.

The council says the trees were cut down at night "for reasons of public safety" and to minimise disruption. It says it planned to replace the trees with 169 'semi-mature' trees which it claims will be healthier and more suited to the location.

Bingley: 'If others feel they can do better, then that's great with me'

Cllr Bingley has not stated why he is resigning though he has come under pressure about plans to continue the £12.7m scheme. He had previously faced several high-profile Conservative councillors resigning, leading him in charge of a minority administration.

Speaking to Plymouth Live, Bingley said: “I've always said I'm not a full-time politician, I don't seek to be, I'm just an individual who is passionate and ambitious for Plymouth.

"If others feel they can run our glorious Ocean City better, then that's great with me. 'Over to you,' I say."

He added: “I urge my successors not to sink back into petty party political infighting as that sad tendency has held back our city for so many years in the past. When good people see that, they soon politely walk away.”

Bingley, who became leader in March 2022 after taking over from Cllr Nick Kelly, said of his time in office: "We've delivered so much as a team over the past year including establishing the UK's first freeport and delivering huge infrastructure improvements at Forder Valley. We've delivered stability and gripped out-of-control public finances.

“We even got the council lawn-mowing service back in full service. Not bad for a minority administration.

"We've reignited action to reinstate a Plymouth airport and not ducked the big decisions, including beginning to transform Armada Way into a wonderful tree-lined zone whereby businesses and cafes and people feel safe to operate from again.”

Labour: 'Sole responsibility' for the Armada Way controversy lies with Bingley

Campaign group STRAW have also responded to Bingley's resignation.

In a statement, a spokesperson said: "We are not surprised to hear of Richard Bingley's resignation given the outrage over the decision he made to but down our trees last week.

"We hope that in light of this news that the council will see sense and save taxpayer's money by abandoning their attempts to discharge our injunction."

Luke Pollard, a Labour politician and MP for Plymouth Sutton and Devonport, has repeatedly criticised the council's handling of the Armada Way scheme. He said that "sole responsibility" for the controversy around the plans lies with Bingley.

Reacting to the leader's resignation, Pollard told ITV News: "Richard Bingley is right to resign because he has overseen a disastrous piece of environmental vandalism in Plymouth City Centre.

"The felling of 100 trees is simply unacceptable in the way that the council have done it. Ignoring the public, refusing proper public consultation and then presiding over a really arrogant way of responding to this...

"Now, I don't just want Bingley to go, I want the entire Tory council to be voted out in May, and that's what voters will have an opportunity to do, in the local elections."

In a statement, he added: "The sole responsibility lies with Bingley for ordering the chainsaws in and the Tory Council for signing it off.

"Bingley’s resignation is only the latest chapter of Tory instability plaguing Plymouth City Council after Nick Kelly’s suspension last year."

Updates to follow