2010 United Kingdom general election debates can do something to change our country." The final round of the first ever televised leaders' debates, hosted by the BBC, was held in the Great Hall of Birmingham University on 29 April 2010. The background to the debate was overshadowed a day before by a remark made by Gordon Brown in private, while being driven away after canvassing in Rochdale, when he met retired council worker Gillian Duffy. In the remark, caught by a lapel microphone, Brown said that "...she was just a sort of bigoted woman who said she used to be Labour". At the beginning of the
2012 Rochdale Metropolitan Borough Council election Farnell and Allen Brett. It also produced Rochdale's youngest ever councillor in Liam O'Rourke. These results also led to the resignation of local Liberal Democrat leader Wera Hobhouse. After the election, the composition of the council was: "In 2008 Peter Evans stood in this ward as a Liberal Democrat." "In 2008, Mohammad Sharif stood in this ward for the Liberal Democrats." "Maureen Rowbothan stood for the ward in 2008 as a Labour candidate." "Jean Ashworth stood for the ward in 2008 as a Liberal Democrat." 2012 Rochdale Metropolitan Borough Council election The 2012 Rochdale Council election took place on 3