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Cornwall’s Dick Cole, UK’s longest-serving party leader, steps down - Cornwall Live
Dick Cole, Mebyon Kernow leader since 1997 and a Cornwall councillor for 27 years, is stepping down, succeeded by Michael Bunney.
Councillor dossier
Dick Cole
Data last refreshed:
Attendance
88%
present at meetings
Rank
54
of 87 councillors
Active red flags
0
no current flags
Conduct cases
2
code of conduct cases
Code of Conduct
7 May 2025
The complainant alleged that Councillor R. Cole failed to respond to communications, supported a private interference by a member of the public, misused a door‑bell camera video, offered money and campaigned to discredit the complainant’s integrity, constituting bullying and a breach of data‑protection rules. The council rejected the complaint, finding no breach of the Code of Conduct and that the public‑interest test was not met.
Outcome: no breach
6 Mar 2025
The complainant alleged that Councillor Cole interfered in his and his late wife's private and financial affairs, treated him with contempt, failed to respond to emails, and breached several parts of the Council's Code of Conduct, but the decision maker found the information insufficient and rejected the complaint.
Outcome: dismissed
Attendance
88%overall attendance
2 of the apologies were covered by a substitute; 3 attendances were as a substitute for another member; also observed 16 meetings of committees they do not sit on (not counted above).
| Committee | Held | Attended | Rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| Budget Development Overview and Scrutiny Committee | 5 | 4 | 80% |
| Constitution and Governance Committee | 6 | 5 | 83% |
| Cornwall Council | 10 | 10 | 100% |
| Corporate Finance and Performance Overview and Scrutiny Committee | 8 | 6 | 75% |
| Strategic Planning Committee(3 as substitute) | 3 | 3 | 100% |
| Sustainable Growth and Place Overview and Scrutiny Committee | 1 | 1 | 100% |
Voting Record
Cornwall Council doesn’t publish how individual councillors vote. Its minutes record each decision, not who voted which way.
Committee Memberships
- Budget Development Overview and Scrutiny Committee
- Community Wellbeing Overview and Scrutiny Committee— Substitute
- Constitution and Governance Committee— Chairman
- Cornwall Council
- Corporate Finance and Performance Overview and Scrutiny Committee
- East Sub-Area Planning Committee— Substitute
- Strategic Planning Committee— Substitute
Election History
CompetitiveScore: 57/100→ Stable
Won by 458 votes (26.7%)13.3% swing needed to unseat
Dick Cole's majority of 458 votes (26.67%) in 2025 is substantial, but the margin has narrowed significantly by 32.8 percentage points from the previous election. With a low turnout of 29.49% and a swing of just 13.34% needed to unseat the councillor, the increased number of candidates (from 3 to 5) and reduced vote share suggest growing vulnerability despite the comfortable win.
Cornwall Council Elections 2025 (2025) All 2025 results
| Candidate | Party | Votes | Share | Elected |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dick Cole | Mebyon Kernow | 1,000 | 58.2% | ✓ |
| Stephen James Pike | Reform UK | 542 | 31.6% | |
| Andrew Hannan | Conservative | 71 | 4.1% | |
| Elizabeth Ann Burroughs | Liberal Democrat | 54 | 3.1% | |
| Stuart Charles Hinde | Labour | 50 | 2.9% |
Turnout: 29.5% (1,717 of 5,823 electors) · 5 spoilt votes
Cornwall Council Elections 2021 (2021) All 2021 results
| Candidate | Party | Votes | Share | Elected |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dick Cole | Mebyon Kernow | 1,501 | 77.9% | ✓ |
| Nick Morris. | Conservative | 354 | 18.4% | |
| Julian Young | Liberal Democrat | 73 | 3.8% |
Meeting Activity
Cabinet - 23 September 2026
Observed23 Sept 2026
Cornwall Council - 15 September 2026
Present15 Sept 2026
Present
Observed
Cabinet - 29 July 2026
Observed29 Jul 2026
Observed
Cornwall Council - 21 July 2026
Present21 Jul 2026
Strategic Planning Committee - 16 July 2026
Present (as substitute)16 Jul 2026
Cabinet - 17 June 2026
Observed17 Jun 2026
Strategic Planning Committee - 11 June 2026
Observed11 Jun 2026
Present
Strategic Planning Committee - 21 May 2026
Present (as substitute)21 May 2026
Cornwall Council - 19 May 2026
Present19 May 2026
Cornwall Council - 21 April 2026
Present21 Apr 2026
Present
Individual Decision Day - 18 March 2026
Observed18 Mar 2026
Cabinet - 18 March 2026
Observed18 Mar 2026
Other media mentions
No media coverage recorded.
In recent briefs
Daily-brief items naming Dick Cole (last 90 days)
- Cornwall’s Dick Cole, UK’s longest-serving party leader, steps down - Cornwall Live
cornwalllive.com · 12 Oct 2026
News coverage
View all 136 articles →cornwalllive.com
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Gordon Ramsay angered some Rock village residents by building a large modernist house in the wealthy Cornwall coastal community.
cornwalllive.com
Cornwall not combining with Devon is 'firmed up' as devolution fight continues - Cornwall Live
Cornwall Council agreed to explore becoming a Single Foundation Strategic Authority, firming up its position against merging with Devon.
cornwalllive.com
Cornwall Council reluctantly agrees 'horrific budget' - Cornwall Live
Cornwall Council approved a budget with nearly 5% council tax increase after politicians criticized Labour government's removal of rurality funding factor.
devonlive.com
Cornwall Council asked if its use of 'chairman' is sexist - Cornwall Live
Cornwall Council's constitution committee debated changing "chairman" to gender-neutral alternatives in official language and committee procedures.
Coverage from cornwalllive.com, devonlive.com, plymouthherald.co.uk. May not be exhaustive.
Profile
Dick Cole represents the St Dennis & St Enoder ward for Mebyon Kernow. His meeting attendance stands at 29 out of 33 meetings, or 88%. He has had two conduct cases, both of which were dismissed with no breach found. There is no available expense data for Cole, and he has zero active red flags. There are no media mentions recorded for him.
Generated by AI from public data. May contain errors.
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<iframe src="https://cornwallpoliticalwatch.com/embed/councillor/dick-cole" width="350" height="250" frameborder="0"></iframe>Frequently asked questions
- Who is Cllr Dick Cole?
- Dick Cole is a Cornwall councillor representing the St Dennis & St Enoder ward as a Mebyon Kernow member.
- What ward does Dick Cole represent?
- Dick Cole represents St Dennis & St Enoder on Cornwall Council.
- What is Dick Cole's meeting attendance rate?
- Dick Cole has been recorded as present at 88% of Cornwall Council meetings (29 of 33 indexed by Cornwall Political Watch).
- How can I contact Dick Cole?
- You can contact Dick Cole by email at [email protected]; by phone on 07791 876607; on X / Twitter at @CllrDickCole. Cornwall Council also publishes contact details on the official members' page at democracy.cornwall.gov.uk.
- Are there any code-of-conduct cases involving Dick Cole?
- Cornwall Council's standards process has recorded 2 code-of-conduct cases involving Dick Cole. Each case is publicly viewable; see the Code of Conduct section of this page for details.
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