Rod Hills

Rod I. Hills (24 September 194628 July 2003) was a British academic and Labour Party politician, who served as the leader of York City Council and then City of York Council from 1984 until 2002, when he was removed from the position and suspended from the Labour Party amidst various controversies involving his leadership style and his personal life. He retired from the council in 2003, and died two months later.

Early life Hills was born in Leicester, and spent most of his childhood in Folkestone. His father had been a Conservative Party activist, but died when Hills was 13 years old. Hills would subsequently attend the University of York, and joined the Labour Party a year later. After he graduated, Hills became a lecturer of economic and social theory at the university.

Political career Hills was first elected to York City Council in 1979, representing the Bootham ward, though due to a boundary redrawing he was forced to run again the following year, and was re-elected by a larger margin. He continued to serve was ward councillor until the council was reformed as City of York Council, whereupon he ran for the Clifton wards in 1995 and 1999. Additionally, he was elected to the Clifton ward on North Yorkshire County Council in 1981, and would continue to hold that role until the formation of the unitary City of York Council in 1996.

When Hills was first elected as a councillor, York City Council was run by a Conservative majority administration, though this was reduced to a minority administration within a year. Hills was elected as Labour group leader following the 1984 election, which saw Labour become the largest party on the council, and they formed a minority administration with the support of the SDP–Liberal Alliance, with Hills becoming Leader of the council. Two years later, Labour won a majority of seats on the council, In February 2003, Hills would be arrested in connection with Wallace's death, though no criminal charges over the matter would ultimately be pursued against him prior to his own death.

In May 2002, Hills was arrested and formally charged the following month with a number of crimes including blackmail, soliciting, witness intimidation, dangerous driving, perverting the course of justice, and wasting police time. A trial at Newcastle Crown Court over the blackmail charges ultimately collapsed after the prosecution offered no evidence of the alleged crime, with the soliciting and wasting police time charges also being dropped. The only charge that Hills would ultimately be convicted on was dangerous driving. He was survived by his first wife, Liz, and two children from their marriage.

In 2009, fellow Labour councillor and York University academic Roger Pierce began a research project into Hills' career as York council leader, feeling that his legacy had been "airbrushed" from history both by the Labour group and the Liberal Democrat administration that took over the council in 2003.