Kate Allsop
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2021}}
{{Short description|2nd Mayor of Mansfield, England}}
{{Infobox officeholder
|image =
| caption =
| name = Kate Allsop
| order=
| office = 2nd Mayor of Mansfield
| deputy =
| birth_date =
| term_start = 11 May 2015
| term_end = 5 May 2019
| predecessor = Tony Egginton
| successor = Andy Abrahams
| party = Conservative {{small|(before 2011)}}
Mansfield Independent Forum {{small|(2011–2019)}}
Brexit Party {{small|(2019–present)}}
| website =
}}
Kate Allsop is a British local politician who was the directly elected mayor of Mansfield from 2015 until the 2019 election when she was beaten by Labour candidate Andy Abrahams by two votes.{{cite web|url=http://www.mansfield.gov.uk/mayor|title=Mayor|publisher=www.mansfield.gov.uk}}{{cite web|url=http://lga.moderngov.co.uk/mgUserInfo.aspx?UID=2186|title=Mayor Kate Allsop|website=Local Government Association|access-date=13 August 2018|archive-date=13 August 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180813170654/http://lga.moderngov.co.uk/mgUserInfo.aspx?UID=2186|url-status=dead}}{{cite news|url=https://www.chad.co.uk/news/politics/live-mansfield-s-mayoral-election-as-it-happens-1-9747442|title=Labour wins mayoral election by just two votes|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190503161729/https://www.chad.co.uk/news/politics/labour-wins-mansfield-mayoral-election-by-just-two-votes-1-9747442|archive-date=2019-05-03|newspaper=Chad.co.uk|date=3 May 2019|access-date=3 May 2019}}
Early Political Career
She first stood for the post in 2002 as a member of the Conservative Party.{{Cite web|url=https://www.chad.co.uk/news/mayor-election-goes-to-second-vote-1-695648|title=Mayor election goes to second vote|website=www.chad.co.uk|language=en|date=18 October 2002|access-date=6 August 2019|archive-date=6 August 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190806111051/https://www.chad.co.uk/news/mayor-election-goes-to-second-vote-1-695648|url-status=dead}} Allsop left the Conservative party in 2003 to become an "Independent Conservative", describing herself in the local newspaper as "true blue", remaining as president of Mansfield's Conservative Association.[https://www.chad.co.uk/news/mansfield-s-only-2-tory-councillors-become-independent-conservatives-1-710234 Mansfield's only 2 Tory councillors become Independent Conservatives] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191115013228/https://www.chad.co.uk/news/mansfield-s-only-2-tory-councillors-become-independent-conservatives-1-710234 |date=15 November 2019 }} Chad, 17 June 2003. Retrieved 15 November 2019
She later joined the Mansfield Independent Forum and was elected as a councillor in 2011.{{Cite web|url=http://www.mansfield.gov.uk/CHttpHandler.ashx?id=9760&p=0|title=Mansfield District Council Election declaration of result 2011|last=|first=|date=|website=|access-date=}}{{Dead link|date=March 2025 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}{{cite web|url=https://www.chad.co.uk/news/mansfield-mayoral-election-candidates-announced-for-7th-may-poll-1-7202922|title=MANSIELD MAYORAL ELECTION: Candidates announced for 7th May poll|publisher=www?Chad.co.uk|access-date=11 August 2018|archive-date=11 August 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180811200118/https://www.chad.co.uk/news/mansfield-mayoral-election-candidates-announced-for-7th-may-poll-1-7202922|url-status=dead}}
Mayor of Mansfield
Allsop succeeded Tony Egginton as mayor after beating the Labour party candidate in the 2015 Mayoral election.{{cite web |url=http://www.mansfield.gov.uk/electionresults |title=Mansfield Council – Mayoral election results |publisher=Mansfield District Council |date=8 May 2015 |accessdate=11 August 2018}} Her campaign was afterwards subjected to a Police investigation after allegations were made regarding potential breaches of electoral law, involving spending more on campaigning than the permitted maximum of £6,969.72.{{Cite news|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-nottinghamshire-34527096|title=Police probe mayoral election spending|work=BBC local news Nottingham|date=14 October 2015|access-date=6 August 2019|language=en-GB}} The Crown Prosecution Service's lawyer subsequently confirmed the probe had been dropped due to "...insufficient evidence to provide a realistic prospect of conviction.".{{Cite news|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-nottinghamshire-35786369|title=Mansfield mayoral election campaign probe dropped|work=BBC local news Nottingham|date=11 March 2016|access-date=19 August 2019|language=en-GB}} As Mayor of Mansfield, she was in control of the Mansfield District.[https://www.theguardian.com/public-leaders-network/2018/feb/20/uk-mayors-world-mayor-prize-women How many UK mayors are eligible to be world mayor? Hardly any] www.theguardian.com Retrieved 11 August 2018[https://www.nottinghampost.com/news/business/mansfield-one-step-closer-getting-955126 Mansfield one step closer to getting major hotel after council agrees to sell land] nottinghampost.com
Involvement in Brexit Party
Following her tenure as mayor, Allsop briefly served as an advisor to Merthyr Tydfil council before the agreement of £300 per day plus expenses was terminated when, abruptly, she publicly announced her intention to be the Brexit Party's parliamentary candidate in Mansfield.[https://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/politics/merthyr-brexit-party-allsop-wales-16698909 Expert sent in to help failing Welsh council revealed to be Brexit Party candidate] Walesonline, 4 August 2019. Retrieved 11 November 2019
Allsop had been recruited as an experienced Independent former local bureaucrat "...to develop and strengthen working relationships across all political groups and between members and officers.".[https://gov.wales/written-statement-additional-support-merthyr-tydfil-county-borough-council Written Statement: Additional support for Merthyr Tydfil County Borough Council] Julie James, AM, Minister for Housing and Local Government, https://gov.wales, 27 June 2019. Retrieved 15 November 2019 Following Allsop's announcement to stand as an MP without notifying her employer (the Welsh devolved government), her 'independent' status was fundamentally changed and compromised the basis on which she had been selected, by becoming prominently engaged in national political activity.[https://gov.wales/written-statement-merthyr-tydfil-county-borough-council Written Statement: Merthyr Tydfil County Borough Council] Julie James, AM, Minister for Housing and Local Government, https://gov.wales, 6 August 2019. Retrieved 15 November 2019
Welsh Government minister Julie James stated it would be "inappropriate" for Allsop to continue in the role as an independent advisor.{{Cite news|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-wales-49236364|title=Brexit Party candidate sacked as council adviser|work=BBC News Wales|date=5 August 2019|access-date=6 August 2019|language=en-GB}}
Allsop learned on 11 November of Brexit Party supremo Nigel Farage's decision to withdraw their parliamentary candidates in the 12 December 2019 general election from 317 areas having a sitting conservative MP – including Mansfield, where Allsop had planned to stand since before losing her job as an adviser to Merthyr council in August.[https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/election-2019-50377396 General election 2019: Brexit Party will not stand in Tory seats] BBC News, 11 November 2019. Retrieved 11 November 2019[https://www.chad.co.uk/news/politics/former-mansfield-mayor-and-would-be-brexit-party-candidate-heartbroken-at-withdrawal-1-10097906 Former Mansfield mayor and would-be Brexit Party candidate 'heartbroken' at withdrawal] Chad, 11 November 2019. Retrieved 11 November 2019