Teenager in charge of council with £500m budget? It'll all be fine...

George Finch, 18, has been unexpectedly elevated to leader of Warwickshire County Council after his predecessor lasted just 41 days

Some parents would be nervous about going away for the weekend and leaving their 18-year-old son in charge, given occasional accounts of houses being trashed by scores of drunken teenagers. So news that an 18-year-old Reform UK councillor, George Finch, is now the leader of a council with £1.5 billion of assets and a £500 million revenue budget may strike some as rather alarming.

Perhaps all the more so as Finch was elevated to this position because the previous leader of Warwickshire County Council, Reform’s Rob Howard, held the post for just 41 days – not even outlasting Liz Truss’s Downing Street sojourn – before deciding the role was “extremely demanding” and his health wasn’t up to it, although he is remaining as a councillor.

George Finch, 18, is now the interim leader of Warwickshire County Council (Picture: Warwickshire County Council) | PA

Finch, who will serve as interim leader until a new one is elected, said he would “ensure that this council is in steady hands”. It was meant as a reassuring metaphor, though it might actually be better if his youthful hands trembled a little.

However, we’re sure it will all be fine. After all, what’s the worst that could happen...?