Tom Wootton is a British Conservative Party local politician. He became the directly elected Mayor of Bedford in May 2023 local elections and was previously the Bedford Borough Councillor for Wyboston Ward.[1][2][3]

Wootton defeated incumbent Dave Hodgson, a Liberal Democrat who had held the office of mayor for 13 years, by just 145 votes under the first-past-the-post system.[4][5] According to the Sunday Telegraph, Wootton was successful in the election due to his "uncompromising line" on the controversial East West Rail project, which sought to relink Oxford and Cambridge with a direct rail link.[5]

He lives in Ravensden where he manages the family farm, and is married with four children.[6]

References

  1. ↑ Cannon, Finley (2023-05-10). "Who is Tom Wootton? Bedford's first new mayor in more than a decade". bedfordshirelive. Retrieved 2023-06-24.
  2. ↑ Hutchinson, Paul (2023-05-17). "Exclusive: Bedford's new mayor talks about getting settled in and who will form his executive". Bedford Independent. Retrieved 2023-12-22.
  3. ↑ "Local elections 2023: Conservatives take Bedford mayor from Lib Dems". 2023-05-06. Retrieved 2023-12-22.
  4. ↑ "Local elections 2023: Conservatives take Bedford mayor from Lib Dems". BBC News. 6 May 2023. Retrieved 2024-01-13.
  5. 1 2 Clark, Ross (21 May 2023). "Ulez expansion can be the end of Sadiq Khan's misrule". Sunday Telegraph. Retrieved 2024-01-13 – via EBSCOHost.
  6. ↑ "Mayor Tom Wootton". Bedford Borough. 2022-03-06. Retrieved 2023-06-24.


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