At the Annual Meeting of Surrey Heath Borough Council, Cllr. Pat Tedder was sworn in as the Mayor of Surrey Heath for the forthcoming year.
This was the first meeting since the local elections, and whilst it was largely procedural, it is an important event in the Council's calendar as it marks the start of a new term of office for councillors. The meeting saw the new Leader of the Council selected, along with their Executive, and the appointment of members to committees with the selection of Chairs and Vice Chairs.
The following appointments were announced:
- Leader: Cllr. David Whitcroft
Portfolio Holders:
- Deputy Leader and Environment and Health: Cllr. Morgan Rise
- Economic Development: Cllr. Kel Finan-Cooke
- Finance and Customer Services: Cllr. Leanne MacIntyre
- Housing, Safeguarding and Support: Cllr. Lisa Finan-Cooke
- Leisure, Culture and Community: Cllr. John Skipper
- Planning and Control: Cllr. Alan Ashbery
- Transformation: Cllr. Shaun Macdonald
The Conservative group at Council proposed Cllr. Victoria Wheeler as the chair for Planning and Control, with this seconded by Cllr. Tedder and backed by the Labour group and independents. Having been the vice chair of planning, competent at planning law, and thorough in researching developments to ensure they are appropriate to the local area, Cllr. Wheeler would have been a natural replacement for outgoing Chair Cllr. Edward Hawkins. This decision was based upon experience rather than party lines, and was unfortunately not agreed upon by the new administration.
At the Mayor-making ceremony, Cllr. Pat Tedder, who represents Windlesham and Chobham, was sworn in as Mayor, receiving the Mayoral chain of office. Cllr. Sarbie Kang was elected as the Deputy Mayor.
The role of Mayor is a historical one, dating back as far 451 AD, and the Mayor is the first citizen and the King's representative in the Borough and, as such, takes precedence over all others in the Borough. The only exception to this rule is when royalty or the Lord-Lieutenant are visiting the Borough.
The Mayor represents the Council across the community, carrying out ceremonial duties, chairing meetings and attending numerous public engagements throughout their term of office - when Sarah Jane was Mayor back in 2020/21, she attended over 350 different events in one year!
We wish Cllr. Tedder a great year as our Mayor!
The full minutes and agenda of the meeting can be found here: Agenda for Council on Wednesday, 17th May, 2023, 7.00 pm (moderngov.co.uk)
Pictured, the 51st Mayor of Surrey Heath Cllr. Pat Tedder
