Millie Earl

Councillor
Millie Earl
Leader of Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole Council
Incumbent
Assumed office
14 July 2024
Preceded byVikki Slade
Councillor for Newtown and Heatherlands
Incumbent
Assumed office
2 May 2019
Personal details
Born1990 or 1991 (aged 33 or 34)
Poole, Dorset, England
PartyLiberal Democrats

Millie Clementine Earl (born 1990 or 1991) is a British Liberal Democrat politician who has served as the leader of Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole Council since 2024.

Early life

Millie was born in Poole and grew up on Ashley Road.[1]

Career

Earl is a veteran campaigner working with charities like Dorset Wildlife Trust and the Bournemouth Foodbank.[2] In the 2015 Poole Borough Council election, she was a Liberal Democrat candidate in Creekmoor ward but was not elected.[3]

In the 2019 Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole Council election, she was elected in Newtown and Heatherlands.[4] In the 2023 Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole Council election, she was re-elected in her ward topping the poll with 1,966 votes.[5] In the election the Liberal Democrats became the largest party and took control of the council holding the most seats.[6] The Liberal Democrats formed a coalition with Christchurch Independents, Poole People Party and the Bournemouth Independent Group.[7] Earl was appointed Deputy Council Leader with the portfolio of "Connected Communities".[8] In 2023, Earl was awarded the Belinda Eyre-Brook Award at the Liberal Democrat Conference in Bournemouth.[9]

In the 2024 United Kingdom general election, council leader Vikki Slade was elected Member of Parliament (MP) for Mid Dorset and North Poole, so Earl took over as interim council leader.[10][11] When the council reconvened she was elected.[12] She became the fifth council leader in five years.[13] As council leader she has been responsible in negotiations surrounding the future of the Bournemouth Air Festival.[14] In September 2024, the "Best Value Notice" the Government put on BCP Council was lifted with Earl saying the council was in a "much healthier place".[15]

As council leader she launched a consultation on new parish and town councils.[16] In April 2025, she cut the ribbon at the new soft play facility at Kings Park Leisure and Learning Centre in Boscombe.[17] In June 2025, Earl called for the cancellation of a planned concert in Bournemouth by the American musician Marilyn Manson for his One Assassination Under God Tour.[18] This was due to the allegations made by actress Evan Rachel Wood.[19] On 24 June 2025, BCP Council was won Senior Leadership Team of the Year at the Municipal Journal (MJ) Local Government Achievement Awards.[20] Earl said "this award is real recognition for the remarkable work BCP Council does despite facing significant and unique challenges".[21]

In July 2025, she warned that BCP Council was under "imminent financial threat" over increased demand for SEND services.[22] The council has taken on debt to pay for those demands.[23] Earl wrote a letter to Deputy Prime Minister of the United Kingdom Angela Rayner asking for further SEND support.[24]

In September 2025, she opened the Liberal Democrat Conference in Bournemouth alongside MP Vikki Slade.[25] In May 2026, she was a candidate for Poole Town Council in Newtown.[26] She was defeated by Reform UK.[27]

Political views

Earl supported the use of "hybrid and online participation" for council meetings.[28] During the COVID-19 pandemic Earl helped organise a community festival in Parkstone.[29] She presented a petition on measures to prevent anti-social behaviour in her ward.[30] The petition entitled "Make Ashley Road Safe" was drawn up following a number of incidents in the area.[31] Earl has advocated the government allowing councils to levy a tourist tax.[32] In order to repurpose vacant town centre properties the council introduced a High Street Rental Auction scheme.[33] She has been a critic of Reform UK.[34] She supported the expansion of the JPMorgan Chase campus in Littledown.[35] As council leader Earl has promoted a residents card scheme.[36] The BCP Life programme launched on 27 August 2026.[37] The card enables perks and discounts for local residents including parking.[38]

Earl opposed Conservative proposals to enforce Public Spaces Protection Orders (PSPO) which included fining homeless people in the local authority, calling the policy "very cruel".[39] Earl supports devolution[40] but was critical of the English Devolution Bill proposed by the Labour government which offered a devolution deal and metro mayor for the region.[41] Following a council vote, it was decided that the unitary authority would join the Heart of Wessex Combined Authority instead of Hampshire and Solent, in which Earl described as the "best option".[42][43] After the government did not proceed with the plans, Earl advocated for a devolved mayor for the Wessex region alongside leaders in Dorset, Wiltshire and Somerset.[44]

References

  1. ↑ "Poole Team 2024 - Poole Liberal Democrats". www.poole-libdems.org.uk. Retrieved 2025-01-08.
  2. ↑ "Millie Earl | Dorset LEP". www.dorsetlep.co.uk. Retrieved 2025-01-08.
  3. ↑ "Election 2015 Results". poole.gov.uk. Poole Borough Council. Archived from the original on 2018-05-24. Retrieved 2018-05-24.
  4. ↑ "Local elections 2019: results for Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole at a glance". Bournemouth Echo. 2019-05-03. Retrieved 2025-01-08.
  5. ↑ "Newtown and Heatherlands (2023)". BCP Council. 4 May 2023. Retrieved 2025-01-08.
  6. ↑ "'Blown away': Liberal Democrats storm into largest BCP Council party after election". Bournemouth Echo. 2023-05-06. Retrieved 2025-01-08.
  7. ↑ "BCP council to be run by coalition led by Lib Dem Vikki Slade". BBC News. 2023-05-24. Retrieved 2025-01-08.
  8. ↑ "Vikki Slade elected as leader of BCP Council". www.middorsetlibdems.org.uk. Retrieved 2025-01-08.
  9. ↑ Pack, Mark (11 October 2023). "Let's make it five in a row". www.libdems.org.uk. Retrieved 2025-06-25.
  10. ↑ "Dorset MP Vikki Slade steps down as leader of BCP Council". BBC News. 2024-07-09. Retrieved 2025-01-08.
  11. ↑ "What BCP Council's new cabinet looks like as new leader is elected". Bournemouth Echo. 2024-07-24. Retrieved 2025-09-21.
  12. ↑ "BCP Council appoints leader to replace newly elected MP". BBC News. 2024-07-24. Retrieved 2025-01-08.
  13. ↑ Simpson, Matt (2024-07-23). "BCP Council's fifth leader in five years elected". Bournemouth Echo. Retrieved 2026-08-04.
  14. ↑ "Bournemouth Air Festival: Talks begin on events future". BBC News. 2024-09-10. Retrieved 2025-01-08.
  15. ↑ "Government no longer concerned with BCP Council". BBC News. 2024-09-12. Retrieved 2025-01-08.
  16. ↑ "BCP Council launches consultation on new town and parish councils". Bournemouth Echo. 2025-04-02. Retrieved 2025-04-09.
  17. ↑ "New soft play centre for children and families opens in Bournemouth". Bournemouth Echo. 2025-04-07. Retrieved 2025-04-09.
  18. ↑ "BCP Council leader calls for Marilyn Manson show to be cancelled". Bournemouth Echo. 2025-06-18. Retrieved 2025-06-19.
  19. ↑ "Bournemouth council leader plea to cancel Marilyn Manson show". BBC News. 2025-06-18. Retrieved 2025-06-19.
  20. ↑ "BCP Council wins 'Senior Leadership Team of the Year' award". Bournemouth Echo. 2025-06-24. Retrieved 2025-06-25.
  21. ↑ "Lib Dem Stockport awarded Local Authority of the Year at Municipal Journal Awards". Liberal Democrat Voice. Retrieved 2025-06-25.
  22. ↑ "BCP Council 'insolvent' due to SEND debt, leader says". BBC News. 2025-07-08. Retrieved 2025-07-10.
  23. ↑ "Council needs to borrow £57.5million from government". Bournemouth Echo. 2025-01-30. Retrieved 2025-07-10.
  24. ↑ "BCP Council calls for urgent SEND solution". BCP. Retrieved 2025-07-10.
  25. ↑ "A look ahead at key event at this year's Liberal Democrat conference". Bournemouth Daily Echo. 2025-09-10. Retrieved 2025-09-21.
  26. ↑ "Poole Town Council candidates announced ahead of May elections". Bournemouth Echo. 2026-05-05. Retrieved 2026-05-12.
  27. ↑ "IN FULL: Bournemouth, Poole and Broadstone town council election results". Bournemouth Echo. 2026-05-09. Retrieved 2026-05-12.
  28. ↑ "BCP Council to debate virtual meetings and remote voting". BBC News. 2024-12-10. Retrieved 2025-01-08.
  29. ↑ "Community festival draws crowds to sunny Poole high street over bank holiday". Bournemouth Echo. 2021-09-04. Retrieved 2025-01-08.
  30. ↑ "More changes coming to tackle high street's anti-social behaviour issues". Bournemouth Echo. 2021-12-20. Retrieved 2025-01-08.
  31. ↑ "'Make Ashley Road Safe': plea after rise in anti-social behaviour and drug use". Bournemouth Echo. 2021-03-26. Retrieved 2025-01-08.
  32. ↑ "BCP Council asks government for power to introduce tourism tax". BBC News. 2026-01-12. Retrieved 2026-08-04.
  33. ↑ Knight, Hannah (2026-08-03). "Town centre business revival driven by crackdown on uncooperative landlords". Bournemouth Echo. Retrieved 2026-08-04.
  34. ↑ Rhodes, Erin (2025-09-19). ""We've proved that Reform are beatable, and it's the Lib Dems that can do it"". Bournemouth Echo. Retrieved 2026-08-04.
  35. ↑ "Office space expansion for JPMorganChase in Bournemouth approved". BBC News. 2026-07-06. Retrieved 2026-08-04.
  36. ↑ Woodward, Amy (2026-03-24). "Name and design of BCP residents' discount card revealed". BBC News. Retrieved 2026-08-04.
  37. ↑ Dimitrova, Galya (2026-07-28). "BCP Council launches residents discount card". BBC News. Retrieved 2026-08-04.
  38. ↑ Woodward, Amy (2026-07-28). "New council scheme offers residents discounts for parking, ice cream and more". Bournemouth Echo. Retrieved 2026-08-04.
  39. ↑ "Dorset homeless people face fines for sleeping in doorways". BBC News. 2020-08-28. Retrieved 2025-01-08.
  40. ↑ "BCP and Dorset council leaders call for devolution deal". Bournemouth Echo. 2025-12-19. Retrieved 2026-08-04.
  41. ↑ "BCP Council hits out at Labour's approach to devolution". Bournemouth Echo. 2025-01-08. Retrieved 2025-01-08.
  42. ↑ "Heart of Wessex debate was 'democracy at its best'". Bournemouth Echo. 2025-01-16. Retrieved 2025-01-17.
  43. ↑ "Devolution deal: BCP Council opts to join Heart of Wessex". BBC News. 2025-01-16. Retrieved 2025-01-17.
  44. ↑ Knight, Hannah (2026-08-03). "Council 'all guns blazing' for devolution mayor deal as chief warns of £300m risk". Bournemouth Echo. Retrieved 2026-08-04.
This page is issued from Wikipedia. The text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 unless otherwise noted. Additional terms may apply for the media files.