The incoming leader of Plymouth City Council is promising to help struggling Plymothians after Plymouth Labour’s momentous night at the polls on Thursday.
Councillor Tudor Evans OBE will become leader of the council for the fifth time next week and has pledged to create a cost of living action plan to help people and families in the city.
“Time and time again we heard from voters in this election that the cost of living crisis was hitting people in the city hard,” said Cllr Evans.  
“Families have seen their mortgages jump hugely since the disastrous budget last year.”
Speaking on his return from a meeting in London on Tuesday with the leader of the Labour Party, Cllr Evans said he would be getting started immediately on the plan as well as delivering on the five pledges Plymouth Labour made to voters in the election campaign.
“Those pledges were the result of thousands of conversations with people in Plymouth,” said Cllr Evans.
“They are very clear about what they want us to deliver.”
As well as Sir Keir Starmer, senior Labour figures including Angela Rayner, Lisa Nandy and Rachel Reeves were also at the gathering of new council leaders from across the country.
“When I met Keir Starmer in London today, I promised him that the new Labour council would, within 100 days, bring forward a cost of living action plan to help people struggling to manage,” said Cllr Evans, who was voted by the Labour group to continue as leader the day after Thursday’s elections, where he retained his Ham seat for the eleventh time. 

Cllr Jemima Laing, who retained her Stoke ward seat for the third time in last week’s elections, was chosen as deputy leader at the same meeting.
“I’m very happy to have been re-elected as deputy leader of the incredible group of councillors who make up Plymouth Labour,” said Cllr Laing.
“It means I’ll have the honour of being, I believe, the first woman deputy leader of the council.
“I’m looking forward to helping Tudor and the rest of the team with the creation of our cost of living action plan, a real lifeline for people struggling in our city which will demonstrate clearly the impact a Labour-run council can have.”
Plymouth Labour now has 31 councillors adding seven new members at the election and formally takes control of the council at the AGM in the Guildhall on Friday 19 May.