City allowed to keep Conservative in charge, being diverse (8)
I believe the answer is:
eclectic
'diverse' is the definition.
(I've seen this in another clue)
'city allowed to keep conservative in charge' is the wordplay.
'city' becomes 'EC' (the City of London postcode).
'allowed to' becomes 'let' (to let something happen is to allow it).
'keep' is an insertion indicator.
'conservative' becomes 'C' (UK political abbreviation).
'in charge' becomes 'ic' (abbreviation for 'in charge').
'let' enclosing 'c' is 'lect'.
'ec'+'lect'+'ic'='ECLECTIC'
'being' is the link.
(Other definitions for eclectic that I've seen before include "Taking ideas from many places" , "Choosing ideas or beliefs from various sources" , "Selecting from various sources" , "Taking ideas from many sources" , "Involving various styles or ideas" .)