Christine Duffy’s Christine Duffy Kidsgrove councillor resignation letter went to Kidsgrove Town Council on 4 August, but she later said she was not stepping down as the borough councillor for the Town ward. The dispute now turns on whether that letter ever reached the proper authority in a way that made the resignation effective.
In the resignation letter, Duffy said she had decided to step down because she had received very little or no training for the role. Later in August, she said: "I am not resigning as the borough councillor for the Town ward and I remain committed to representing the residents who elected me."
Christine Duffy and Kidsgrove
Duffy was elected in May to represent the Town ward on Newcastle-under-Lyme Borough Council. She has also been elected to Kidsgrove Town Council in the past, but she was not a member there after leaving in October 2024.
The letter was hand-delivered to an incorrect address at Kidsgrove Town Council, Gordon Mole said. By the time it reached him as the proper officer, he said he had been notified that the content of the letter had been withdrawn, and he said the councillor concerned continues to serve as a borough councillor.
Gordon Mole and the process
Mole said: "If a councillor wishes to resign then they must follow a specific process as set out in the Local Government Act 1972" and added, "In this instance a letter was hand-delivered to an incorrect address at Kidsgrove Town Council." The Electoral Commission says there is no provision for a councillor to withdraw their resignation once it has been received by the authority.
That leaves the timing of receipt at the center of the case. Duffy said she changed her mind before the letter had been received by the borough council's proper officer, while Mole said the council was dealing with a letter that had been sent to the wrong body and then withdrawn before it reached him in the right role.
Mike Stubbs on the letter
Duffy said she was appalled that her initial resignation letter had been made public and said it was used by political rivals in an effort to force a by-election. Mole said he was seeking "an explanation as to how this has been shared publicly by a third party".
Mike Stubbs called for Mole to investigate the situation. He said: "Had the resignation been dealt with promptly and transparently when first received, it is difficult to see how the current circumstances could have arisen." He also said: "The public are entitled to expect competent, timely and transparent administration from their local authority."
For residents of the Town ward, the practical issue is whether Duffy remains their borough councillor while the resignation dispute is worked through. On the facts given so far, Mole says she does; Duffy says she never resigned from that role; and the legal question turns on where the letter was delivered, when it was received, and whether withdrawal came too early or too late.
