Frankly, it has been a bit of a surreal evening.
I am tremendously grateful to have been elected as Mayor of Huntingdon at this evening’s Town Council, along with Cllr Audrey McAdam as Deputy Mayor. I am a little bit of a loss for words at the moment, as things are only now starting to sink in. I know that there is a great deal of work in the coming year, though, and I look forward to doing my best for our town.I feel like I have more thankyous than I can count – to fellow councillors for supporting me, to my friends and family for coming, to all the people who wished me well this evening and offered their help and support, and to all the Town Council staff for making this the most amazing evening.
Below is a copy of my remarks on being elected.
“The document in front of me says that I now have the opportunity to make a short speech. You will be glad to know that the word ‘short’ is in bold.I would like to start by thanking the members of this Council who have elected me as Mayor.
As my first act as Mayor, I wish to pay tribute to my immediate predecessor, Councillor Karl Webb. I’m sure most people here, if not all, will know Karl and all he has done for Huntingdon, both before and during his mayoralty.In addition to the usual duties of the mayor, he has also, of course, led the council through the very difficult period of covid, with all the challenges that has posed, with poise and with aplomb, while still supporting new councillors, myself included, to give their best.
Karl, thankyou.
I would also like to thank all the staff of Huntingdon Town council, both here in the Town Hall and across Huntingdon, for going above and beyond on so many occasions to make sure we kept providing services to the people of Huntingdon, despite the unprecedented challenges they faced during covid.
In particular, I would like to thank our remarkable town clerk, Mr Philip Peacock. Not only did he keep the show on the road during Covid, he also oversaw, amongst much besides, the completion of the new Crematorium. The Crematorium is the first such facility in the UK to be purpose built and environmentally friendly. This is a remarkable achievement that has brought delegations from across the UK and beyond to understand how it was done. We are fortunate to have such a distinguished clerk, whose knowledge and expertise are recognised in his being the president of the Society of Local Council Clerks.
Mr Clerk, my thanks to you, and I would be grateful if you could convey my and, indeed, the whole council’s thanks to your staff.
It is wonderful to be joined here by friends and family – my wife, Alice, my Dad, Graham, and my friends Saul Jeavons and Su Martin. Thankyou all for coming.I am very much aware that I am a new kid on the block, having only joined the council last year. I do know that I will need to rely on the advice of all our councillors, and particularly our former mayors.In that, we are fortunate to have a great breadth of experience on the council – from Juliet Cole’s many years of charitable work, to Phil Pearce’s legal expertise, and that breadth gives us strength. I am looking forward to getting to know Amanda Charmaine Norton and Gerry Sheils, our newly elected councillors, and to seeing faces both familiar and fresh when we fill the three remaining seats on the council in a few weeks.
I say now that my door will always be open – if you think I’ve missed something, if you think I’ve got something wrong, even if you think I’ve got something right – I promise that I will listen and I will hear you.Turning to the future, I would like to highlight some of the things we have coming up. This year marks, of course, the remarkable achievement of HM The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee. It is worth remarking that HM was already the 12th longest serving monarch of this country when I was born, forty years ago. Seventy years of service to this country and its people is a remarkable achievement, and it is a particular joy for me that I can serve as mayor in this auspicious year and I look forward to joining with you in the celebrations for the Jubilee next month.
Towards the end of the last council, we resolved to sign the Armed Forces Covenant. I am glad that we have made that commitment, and I intend to make sure that we live up to our commitment.
We all know the importance of maintaining and protecting our environment. Huntingdon Town Council has already done much to make ourselves environmentally friendly, and we have an environmental audit reporting soon that will shape our next steps in playing our part in the global fight against climate change.
While there is much to love and celebrate about Huntingdon, we know that there is also much that must be improved. While there may not be much that is in our direct control, there is much that we can do: to listen, to help, and, above all, to speak up. In the words of Saint Óscar Romero, we who have a voice must be a voice for the voiceless.
At the civic service earlier this year, we heard the parable of the talents and the importance of us all using our gifts in the service of others. It is my sincere hope and firm expectation that all those of us who have the privilege of serving on Huntingdon Town Council will do that in this forthcoming year.
So, I stand here as your Mayor. Proud, more than a little nervous, and ready to do my best for our council and our town. I thank you for the trust you have placed in me. With your help, I hope that I – and we – will have a good year – together.”