Lib Dem councillor quits Moray Council three months after election

A by-election has been called after a Lib Dem councillor quit just three months after taking up the role.

Christopher Price was elected to Moray Council without a contest after too-few candidates stood in May's local government elections.

He was the only Liberal Democrat elected to the council when he took up his seat in the three-member Buckie ward.

He was also the first member of his party to enter the council in 15 years.

This morning, Moray Council chief executive Roddy Burns confirmed that Price has resigned and a by-election will now take place.

In a statement, Burns said: "I thank him for his service to his constituents since May and wish him well for the future."

No date has yet been set for the vote, which cost around £20,000.

Buckie is also represented by Sonya Warren of the SNP and Neil McLennan, who now sits as an independent after leaving the Conservatives in July. 

Moray Council has undergone a number of changes since the election results were announced, with new leaders put in place last week.

Conservative councillor Kathleen Robertson, who had been co-leader with McLennan until his removal in a no-confidence vote, is now the sole leader. Independent councillor John Cowe is the authority's first civic leader, an appointment made after council convener Marc Macrae of the Conservatives resigned earlier this month, prior to a planned vote of confidence in him.

Price, a travel clerk at the Ministry of Defence in May, said he was "disappointed" that the ward was uncontested, telling the Press & Journal he felt for "voters who may feel they haven't had their say in this council election".

He said he and his fellow councillors shared "a common desire to provide the highest levels of service and dedication to the ward".