Three party councillors have lost their seats in the Fellgate and Hedworth ward in recent years.

The biggest casualty was Paul Waggott, former leader of the council, who lost his seat in this month's local elections.

Newly-elected council leader Iain Malcolm admits the seats were lost as a result of deeply unpopular proposals mooted three years ago for a business park on Green Belt land in the ward.

And Coun Malcolm pledged lessons had been learned from the fall-out.

He said: "We have listened to what the people have said. Nothing will be built on this land as long as this administration is in place."

Coun Malcolm has also outlined his vision for taking the borough forward.

A key element is the development of new consensus politics in the borough, creating a "council of all the talents".

Coun Malcolm has spoken to the leaders of opposition parties to invite them to work together "for the good of South Tyneside".

And Lib Dems, Conservatives, Progressives and Real Independents are being drafted in to key roles on council committees.

Coun Malcolm said the offer to the opposition parties came with "no strings attached", adding: "They will still oppose us if they feel we are doing the wrong thing."

The move comes after the ruling Labour group lost four seats at the local elections to the Independent Alliance.

But no Independent Alliance members have yet been invited to take on similar roles within the council.

Explaining his reasoning, Coun Malcolm said: "For the moment they are the formal opposition and they have a duty to scrutinise and oppose."

He added: "I recognise the Labour Party doesn't have a monopoly on good ideas. This is about working together in the interests of the borough."

But Coun Malcolm revealed the leaders of all the opposition groups, including Independent Alliance leader Jane Branley, were to be invited to a forthcoming all-party meeting on an issue of grave concern to him – the growing emergence of the British National Party (BNP) within South Tyneside.

He said: "I want to talk about how we can work together to tackle misinformation by the BNP."

As he settles into his new role, Coun Malcolm announced five key priority areas he wants to address.

They include social housing, the environment, tackling anti-social behaviour, jobs and the economy, and a swimming pool for South Shields Foreshore.