Councillor Seb Lowe's speech to the Mayor at the Council AGM today.
"Thank you Mr Mayor. I will be brief as I am aware that the primary purpose of annual council is to honour the incoming and retiring mayor, and the work of former councillors."
"I would however like to place on record my own personal thanks - which I am sure will be echoed by councillors from all parties to my predecessor as Leader Councillor Stokes for his work in leading this council over the past four years - four years which have not always been easy. I know that he will continue to represent the residents of Admirals and Cawston Ward with the diligence and dedication which have been the hallmarks of his work as a councillor."
"I would also like to place on record my thanks to members of this council for the trust you have shown in electing me as leader. To members of other parties I say this: we may have our ideological and political differences. But what unites us is a genuine desire to do the best for the people of Rugby. To bring growth, to bring investment, to bring jobs, to bring infrastructure... and above all the fundamental principle that we are all here to ensure that the people we represent see their quality of life improved as a direct result of the decisions we make here in this chamber. As many councillors of all parties are already aware, I am a big believer in working across the political divide for the greater good of the people of the Borough of Rugby, and I have every confidence that my time in the leaders seat will see us doing precisely that."
"As Leader, my number priority will be the regeneration and improvement of our town centre. Many members will know from previous discussions they have had with me that this is something I feel passionate about. The problems we have in our town centre in Rugby are entirely typical of towns of our size. However, I firmly believe that here in Rugby we have a number of unique advantages in terms of connectivity to the rest of the country and the scale of the development which is taking place across the borough which will allow us to reposition our town centre as a place to do business, a place to live, and a place to socialise. As Leader, repositioning the town centre in this way will be my top priority."
"Turning to the issue of the wider development of Rugby, I am immensely proud of the fact that we are one of the fastest growing towns in the entire United Kingdom. We should all take pride in the fact that this is a pro-growth authority, committed to maximising the economic and social benefits that come with that growth. However, as many of us here have quite rightly observed, it is essential that the growth of our town is accompanied by a similar growth in the infrastructure of our town in order to enable us to support the people who live here."
"I would like to place on record my thanks to those who have agreed to serve in the new cabinet: Councillors Mrs Crane and Ms Robbins who will continue in their previous posts, and Councillors Mrs Simpson Vince and Howard Roberts who will be joining the cabinet for the first time. In addition, I felt the time was right to appoint a deputy, Councillor Poole. Alongside his duties in deputising for me as Leader, Councillor Poole will take on special responsibility for our efforts to target crime and antisocial behaviour. Something which - as a former police officer - he is eminently well-qualified to do."
"I would also like to touch on the subject of the Leader’s allowance. I am pleased to announce that in advance of this meeting, I spoke with the Executive Director, and asked that my own special responsibility allowance as Leader be reduced by 32 per cent. This is in order to bring it in line with other council leaders in the region, and to enable us to take the entirely sensible decision to appoint a deputy leader of this council without incurring any additional costs to the council tax payers of Rugby."
"Finally, I would like to thank you for your support, and say that I look forward to working with you."
