Agenda item

To elect a Leader of the Council and a Deputy Leader of the Council for the municipal year 2023/24.

Leader of the Council

Nominations were invited for the election of the Leader of the Council.

The following were nominated:

Councillor Sam Corcoran – proposed by Councillor L Crane and seconded by Councillor C Browne

Councillor Janet Clowes –   proposed by Councillor S Gardiner and seconded by Councillor K Parkinson

The nominations were put to the vote.

RESOLVED:

That Councillor Sam Corcoran be appointed as Leader of the Council for the 2023-24 Municipal Year.

Deputy Leader of the Council

Nominations were invited for the election of the Deputy Leader of the Council.

It was proposed by Councillor M Goldsmith and seconded by Councillor S Corcoran that Councillor Craig Browne be appointed as the Deputy Leader of the Council for the 2023-24 Municipal Year.

The motion was put to the vote and declared carried.

RESOLVED:

That Councillor Craig Browne be appointed as Deputy Leader of the Council for the 2023-24 Municipal Year.

The Mayor invited the Leader and Deputy Leader to speak.

The Leader, in summary

1             thanked Members for re-electing him as the Leader of the Council.

2     outlined the objectives of the Council for the next four years which included:

·         lobbying the government to change the funding formula for underfunded schools

·         prioritising early intervention for mental health

·         expanding local provision for cared for children thereby reducing the need for costly out of area private placement

·         the continuation of the Council’s commitment to being Carbon Neutral by 2025 – the Carbon Neutral Action Plan set out the details of how this would be achieved

·         no support for fracking but support for biodiversity with a biodiversity net gain supplementary planning document

·         the need to address the 12-year life expectancy gap between different wards in the Borough – the need for good jobs, decent housing, access to green spaces, reduce smoking, healthy diets, create resilient communities and encourage active lifestyles

·         continuation of the Council Tax Support Scheme for low-income households

·         continuation with the regeneration of Crewe and Macclesfield Town Centres

·         continuation of monitoring of houses of multiple occupation.

The Deputy Leader, in summary:

1     on behalf of the Independent Group congratulated Cllr Fletcher on his appointment as Mayor, and thanked Council for supporting his nomination to be Deputy Leader.

2     reported that the Chief Executive had stated at an induction event that Cheshire was the 17^th most complex Council in the country and the challenges faced were many and diverse.

3             He outlined that to meet these challenges the Council would

·         continue to lobby central government for a fairer funding deal

·         explore what a potential devolution deal might look like

·         challenge that income from business rates goes to central government

·         had already committed £19m over 3 years to improve the condition of roads and footpaths

·         had introduced a new on-line portal so that elected members and the public can see where the Highways Teams were working, and appointed an assurance officer to inspect the work of the principal contractor and help to ensure that value for money was achieved

·         improve communication and engagement with residents and he committed to visit every town and parish council who wanted to meet with him

·         would continue to invest in active travel and public transport and provide safe and realistic alternatives to the car

·         deliver key infrastructure projects such as the Middlewich Bypass and A500 dualling

·         would be a full review of the Winter Gritting Routes with the starting point to establish the cost of including every road with a primary school in the regular programme

·         become more transparent with respect to Section 106 agreement and community infrastructure levy funds with Members having access to up-to-date information on what monies were held by the Council and involvement on how these monies was spent in their wards.