‘Politics Is Not Always a Kind Place’ Says Dismissed Lead Councillor

Published on: 20 Jun, 2025
Updated on: 23 Jun, 2025

The ‘reshuffled ‘ GBC Executive

By Martin Giles

Councillors were only informed at 3.47pm this afternoon (Friday) about news that Dragon readers had learned about before 10am – that Cllr George Potter (Lib Dem, Burpham), who was the lead councillor for Climate Control at Guildford Borough Council, had announced that he had left the council’s Executive Committee.

He has confirmed to The Dragon that he did not resign but the reasons for his dismissal remain unclear. The move has been explained as a “reshuffle” and as a result the GBC Executive reduces in number to eight councillors. Up to ten are allowed.

His portfolio, responsibility for Climate Change, has been transferred to Cllr Catherine Houston, who already has the lead councillor responsibility for Leisure.

See Council Leader Julia McShane’s comment below.

The news of his departure first came in a Facebook post in which Potter said: “Politics is not always a kind place, and I always knew that it carried the risk of paying the price for sticking your neck out”.

The Dragon approached Cllr Potter for more information, in particular the reasons for the councillor’s departure, but he declined to explain.

George Potter’s Facebook post is reproduced here in full:

Sadly, after two years and nine months, I have today left office as a Cabinet Member at Guildford Borough Council. Throughout that time period I held portfolio responsibility for climate change and sustainable transport, and I also held responsibility for planning for six months, air quality for six months, and for environmental services for two years and three months.

While I am disappointed to be leaving, politics is not always a kind place, and I always knew that it carried the risk of paying the price for sticking your neck out, so I depart in good spirits.

I am especially proud of all that was achieved in my time in office, from adopting a plan to make the council carbon net zero by 2030, to steering through the launch of the council’s first habitat bank at a new conservation site, to securing the climate emergency as a core priority of the council’s Corporate Strategy. And I would be remiss not to mention the smaller wins like the launch of an ebike-share scheme for Guildford, investment in rewilding, improved recycling rates and making sure council staff in vital roles got the support they needed to deliver the services that residents counted on.

There is very little which I can take sole credit for, as I was incredibly fortunate to get to work with some truly excellent council officers of the highest calibre, in all areas, and it is thanks to their hard work that so much was accomplished. Politicians can set strategic priorities all we like, but without support from officers very little will happen in practice, and I am incredibly grateful for all the support I received from officers and colleagues in taking forwards the commitment to tackling the climate emergency that we all shared.

In my six years and counting as a borough councillor, the fundamental Liberal values of freedom, equality and community, as well as a passionate commitment to the health of our natural world, have been at the heart of my politics. Those values have been at the heart of the Liberal Democrat administration which I was lucky to be a part of, and they are embodied in the council’s adopted commitment to a Greener, Fairer and Thriving Guildford.

I will, naturally, be continuing as a Liberal Democrat borough and county councillor, and I look forward to having more time to dedicate to my ward responsibilities (as well as to my garden!). It’s easy to feel sad when one chapter in your life ends, but that’s not the case for me, as I instead find myself relishing the prospect of the new challenges and adventures to come.

Cllr Julia McShane

Council leader Julia McShane said this afternoon: “As we have reached the halfway point in our term of office, I have taken time to reflect on changes to the council and the positive difference that our Lib Dem administration has made in two years.

“Looking to the future as we embark on local government reorganisation and with elections expected in May 2026, I have decided to create a new eight-member executive and to realign the portfolio responsibilities.

“As George returns to the back benches I would like to thank him for all his hard work on the Executive and to acknowledge his many achievements including the Climate Change Action Plan, embedding Climate Change across the council, introducing the Beryl Bike Scheme to Guildford, increasing biodiversity in the borough and ensuring that ‘A More Sustainable Borough’ is one of the corporate priorities in our Greener, Fairer, Thriving vision for Guildford.”

See also: Comment – What Are We To Make of the GBC Executive ‘Reshuffle’?

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