WHAT tumultuous political times we live in.

There is no major city sized area anywhere in the UK more a bastion of the Conservative party than Bournemouth, along with Christchurch and Poole.

Our towns have been overwhelmingly dominated by this party for decades.

A year ago Bournemouth was as near an autocracy as you could get: 41 Tory cllrs, 1 Green, 2 Independents.

Christchurch, until the merger referendum 2017, no different: 21 Tories, 3 Independents. And Poole, 32 Tories out of a council of 42.

And now, a year or two later, with on-going Brexit and BCP all but enforced merger, we are in a different political world.

I do then wonder if people appreciate the enormity of what has happened. How this has all enormously backfired on the Tories' expectation to be running all three towns.

It is truly seismic. Jaw-dropping. What must be the most dramatic unpredicted change in the political balance of power in our towns in a century. For the Tories clearly traumatic, shaking confidence to the core.

But then we have former Cllr Sue Anderson's letter in the Echo on Monday, bemoaning the unfairness of Tories as the "biggest party" shut out from power. But check the election results Mrs Anderson. What you will find is the other parties out-voting Tories in 24 out of 33 wards by anywhere between 7,000 to 3,000, to 3,500 to 500.

We have in fact arrived de facto, unintended and to everyone's surprise, at ad hoc proportional representation: the Unity Alliance. A fair result reflecting the diversity of our conurbation. And I hope goodbye to monolithic one-party control of our towns and communities for all time.

RON GOODMAN

Newfoundland Drive, Poole