THE Conservative Party has its first borough councillor in central Darwen for a decade — former Liberal Democrat Kevin Connor.

On Thursday he retook the Marsh House ward he held for his previous party between 2000 and 2008.

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It was the third time he had stood for the Tories, missing out to Labour’s John Roberts by just eight votes in last year’s local elections.

In Thursday’s poll he ousted his Labour namesake Frank Connor, Blackburn with Darwen children services boss, by 137 votes.

Borough Conservative group leader Mike Lee and the town’s re-elected Tory MP Jake Berry were delighted and said Cllr Connor’s election gave the party “a base to build on for the future”.

Cllr Connor, 69, a former worker at Lucite International, said: “I am delighted. I was councillor of Marsh House for eight years and worked with the Tories in the coalition in 2008. I got on well with Mike Lee and his predecessor as leader Colin Rigby and I suppose that is when I started to change.

“I finally moved to the Tories in 2011 after a lot of soul searching. I decided that with the coalition government, it was the Conservatives which offered the best chance of an economic recovery.

“I think the party has changed and will continue to change under David Cameron. I am happier with him as leader than I would have been with Margaret Thatcher.”

Married to Barbara, Cllr Connor has two daughters and four grandchildren and lives in Elswick Street on the Marsh House/Sudell border.

Cllr Connor said: “I want to do all I can to get better facilities for Darwen and cleaner streets and few potholes. I want the borough council to create a more business-friendly environment in Darwen. Being the first Tory councillor in central Darwen in ten years gives the party a base to build on to win more councillors in the future.”