Councillor George Murray has been appointed leader of the opposition at Waverley Borough Council, days after the Farnham Residents Group (FNG) formally withdrew from the Liberal Democrat-led administration.

The move follows last week’s announcement that the Farnham Residents had left the ruling coalition over concerns about transparency and decision-making.

Speaking at Waverley’s Budget meeting this week, FNG Leader Cllr Murray, who is also Mayor of Farnham, said the decision to leave the administration after seven years of collaboration had been “extremely difficult”.

“They say a week is a long time in politics, and I can personally vouch for the truth of that statement,” he said.

“Just last week our group made the extremely difficult decision to leave the administration after seven years of collaboration.

“We did so because we increasingly found ourselves in the worst of all possible worlds - neither fully in nor fully out of the administration, with only one member remaining on the executive.

“Key decisions and policy direction were being made without consultation with partners.”

He added that over the past year the tone of political debate had, at times, “crossed the line from robust disagreement into personal attacks and unpleasantness”.

“We believe this behaviour is counterproductive not only to good governance but to the interests of our residents,” he said.

Cllr Murray stressed the break was not personal.

“I want to say to many Liberal Democrat councillors whom we regard as friends and colleagues and who we worked collaboratively with in committees for many years, this is not a betrayal.

“We sincerely hope to work in that same spirit of mutual respect and cooperation.”

He also signalled a willingness to work with other opposition members.

“To our new partners in opposition, we look forward to working with you on mutually agreed issues.

“This is now a finely balanced council operating under a minority administration. It places a responsibility on every one of us to use our influence and votes carefully and constructively.

“As leader of the opposition, I give my assurance that I will do everything I can to act in the best interest of our residents and this council.”

The change means the Liberal Democrat administration now operates as a minority.

Waverley Conservatives said they were “delighted” to see the FNG break away from the administration, adding that the leadership of Liberal Democrats had strained relationships across the authority.

Conservative group leader Cllr Jane Austin said: “In the last six months alone, councillors have been asked to wave through £7 million in cost overruns and back costly vanity projects such as 69 High Street in Godalming.

“In Farnham, businesses have seen promised support during the Farnham Infrastructure Programme works quietly dropped by the Lib Dems, while parking charges are hiked yet again.

“This breakaway is a further indictment of the Liberal Democrats’ actions — they are not delivering a well-run council focused on financial discipline. Instead, we see the political executive operating as an echo chamber, failing to reflect the concerns of councillors and the communities we represent.”

She added that the Conservatives would continue to “scrutinise the administration robustly” and hold its leadership to account.

The Liberal Democrat group has previously rejected claims of a lack of transparency and has said it remains focused on delivering services and preparing the council for local government reorganisation.