A political party has elected its new leader.

Warren Morgan was tonight elected by colleagues to take over the reigns as the leader of the Labour and Co-op group on Brighton and Hove City Council.

He will take over from Gill Mitchell, who decided against standing for another year but will remain a councillor.

Labour are currently the third party on the local authority behind the Greens (22 councillors) and Conservatives (18).

Coun Morgan, 45, who has been a ward councillor in East Brighton since 2000, said he planned to make sure the party was looking ahead to the next local elections in 2015.

He said: “In just 100 weeks voters in Brighton and Hove will get the chance to give their verdict on the Green Party's four years in power and the wholesale privatisation plans of the local Conservatives.

“Despite the huge cuts imposed by the Conservative-led coalition government on the city council, I still believe in providing decent local services delivered by listening to what residents want.”