Bassetlaw Labour announces new leader as Simon Greaves steps down

Coun Naish will take the place of coun Simon Greaves, who has served as both leader of Bassetlaw Labour and Bassetlaw District Council since 2012.

As the Labour Party holds a majority of council seats on the local authority, it is expected that coun Naish will be elected as the new leader of Bassetlaw District Council later this month.

Coun Naish was first elected to Bassetlaw District Council in May 2019 as the district councillor for Sturton ward. He was the first Labour councillor to be elected for the area since the creation of Bassetlaw District Council in 1974.

The councillor grew up in South Wheatley and was educated at Queen Elizabeth’s High School in Gainsborough before studying history at university.

He then joined the graduate scheme at Accenture where he worked for a range of household names including Barclaycard, Lloyds, TSB and Thames Water.

Since leaving Accenture in 2015, he has worked in project management roles for Derbyshire County Council and the electricity company Northern Powergrid, as well as supporting a number of small businesses, including his family’s farm.

Commenting on his election, coun Naish said: “It is an honour to be selected by my colleagues to lead Bassetlaw Labour and the District Council.

“Like Simon before me, I grew up in the district and know first-hand that it’s a great place to live, work and run a business – and I will be working hard to realise our aspirations for this great place.

“Times are extremely tough for everybody at the moment, including the council which is being impacted by the rising costs of living, so I will be immediately looking at ways to help Bassetlaw residents and businesses over the coming months.”