Agenda item

It was proposed by Councillor P Strachan that Councillor Tett be elected as Leader of the Council. The proposer gave a brief history of Councillor Tett`s background stating that he had always operated in an extremely effective manner, and attributed the success of Buckinghamshire to his leadership ability. The proposer went on to state that he had every confidence in his ability to build on the achievements to date and to successfully take forward the new unitary council. As such he had no reservations in formally proposing him as Leader of the Council. 

The proposal was seconded by Councillor A Hussain, who believed his deep understanding of the issues of concern would make him an ideal candidate for Leader.

Councillor E Gemmell rose to nominate himself stating that his purpose as Leader would be to ensure that the duty of care to the climate crisis was observed, and that this duty would not be undermined by party politics. In the light of the climate emergency he stated that it should feature in all elements of Council business.

Councillor G Smith seconded the nomination of Councillor E Gemmell and stated that he believed he was best placed and best qualified to address issues around climate change and to ensure that the actions around this featured in all aspects of Council business, and worked towards achieving a zero carbon economy in the future.  Councillor Smith further stated that the target for climate change needed to be 2030 and that plans were required to  be adjusted in order to achieve this.  He believed that Councillor Gemmell had the vision, drive and the leadership ability to achieve these objectives.

There being no further nominations and a vote having been taken, it was

RESOLVED: That Councillor M Tett be elected as Leader for the life of the Council until 2025.

On his election Councillor Tett was congratulated by the Chairman and thereupon accepted office and made the necessary declaration. He then rose to present his inaugural speech, but prior to this took the opportunity to congratulate the incoming Chairman and Vice Chairman on their appointment wishing them a successful year ahead. He also thanked members of the previous council for their selfless devotion having rallied together to serve and protect the residents of the County.

The Leader announced that we had made great strides forward in spite of the challenges presented by Covid and that solid foundations had been laid which would enable us to move towards the future together and to achieve our priorities for the benefit of all residents.

One of the main areas of focus for the Leader would be the concentration of his efforts on the Covid recovery programme. He intended to continue to support NHS partners in delivering the vaccination programme to enable the rebuilding of the local economy. He also gave mention to the need to prioritise health and well-being and to ensure that schools had access to good mental health support. He further informed the meeting that he intended to deliver on the commitments within the manifesto, on issues such as litter, conditions of roads, and holding HS2 to account. He hoped to do his utmost to police the activity and to help minimise disruption. The Leader also spoke of the need to deliver the Local Plan which would hold significant challenges due to national planning legislation. Enforcement and flouting of planning conditions also needed to be addressed. He also referred to the need for sound finances to enable the council to effectively managed residents` money. He emphasised that all 5 legacy councils had done this efficiently and that this would now enable us to deliver residents` requirements.