But he still keeps a cabinet post if hes in poor health Bill Brooks at NCC

Brooks quits as leader of council
Apr 26 2007
By The Journal

The leader of Northumberland County Council has stepped down, it was revealed last night.
Bill Brooks has been the leader of the county council for two years, but has chosen to leave the post for health reasons.
Senior political figures have known about the Labour councillor's decision for several days, but it also emerged at a party AGM meeting in Northumberland last night.
Last night Coun Brooks said he had enjoyed his time as leader and had wanted to carry on, but that it had been a "political decision".
He added: "I would like to have carried on, but, unfortunately, there are reasons which are personal which make that highly unlikely.

"The people who ought to have known about it, have known about it for some time."
Coun Brooks, who is also a board member at Newcastle International Airport and an executive member of the Association of North-East Councils, joined the council in 1992.
He represented Plessey Ward as a county councillor for two terms before taking over from Gilbert Barker as councillor for Newsham, where he had lived for more than 30 years. Prior to joining the council Coun Brooks, who has a daughter called Joanne, had been a television service technician for nearly 30 years, joining the profession when he left school.
In 1985 he became self-employed and later worked as a taxi driver in the Blyth and Cramlington areas for more than a decade, as well as working installing and repairing security alarms.
On his website Coun Brooks writes: "I have always been interested in politics, more so through an active role in the Trades Union movement, then even more so when, like many others in the late 80s/early 90s, I was forced into the low paid, long hours economy of taxi driving.
"At every opportunity I would write to the media on this and other local issues with some degree of success. This was recognised by members of my local party, who urged me to stand in a by-election, which I did, and won."
Coun Brooks will be replaced by deputy council leader Peter Hillman who was born in Blackpool, but who has lived in his ward since 1973 after leaving the Royal Navy following eight years of service. He joined the Labour Party in 1975, with a "determination to remove the Tory Government".
Coun Hillman, who has two children and three grandchildren, is also a member of ANEC and the International Airport Local Authority Holiday.
He is also chairman of the Seaton Delaval and Holywell Labour Party and chair of Governors at Astley Community High School and a governor at Seaton Delaval First School.