Lee Anderson says 'job not finished' for Ashfield after Jason Zadrozny quits council

Zadrozny has quit as a district councillor, having already resigned as both council leader and Ashfield Independents leader last month after being found guilty at Northampton Crown Court of fraud and tax evasion.

Mr Anderson (Ref), who has called for the Government to send commissioners into Ashfield Council, said Zadrozny had been ‘a dark stain’ on Ashfield and the ‘hard-working people who put their trust in him as their local representative’.

He said: “Convicted fraudster and tax evader Jason Zadrozny has stepped down from his role as councillor after huge pressure from the public and my petition, which gathered more than 3,000 signatures.

“Ashfield residents will know that over the years I've had by share of battles with Zadrozny, and I’ve said many times that he is not fit for public office.

“This whole sorry Jason Zadrozny episode has left a dark stain on our communities and it will take time to repair the damage done, not only to the council, but to Ashfield's reputation.

“However, the job is not finished yet.

“Unfortunately, due to the time of Zadrozny's resignation, electoral law dictates that a by-election in his Larwood ward cannot take place as we are now less than six months away from the scheduled council elections next May.

"It seems to me that Zadrozny has deliberately timed his resignation this way so that Larwood residents are left without a local representative for six months.

“Nevertheless, Ashfield Reform UK and I will be out in his ward in the coming weeks and months to let people know that we will not give up on Ashfield and we will continue to press the Government and the police to investigate this council until we can safely say that it is serving the best interests of the residents of Ashfield.”