I’ll give residents a sense of worth, says leader elected again by Tories

THE LEADER of East Riding of Yorkshire Council has promised to “energise our residents and give them ambition and a sense of worth” after being re-elected by his fellow Conservatives.

Richard Burton will continue as leader after the annual meeting of East Riding Conservatives, who re-elected him as leader of their group. He became only the second sole leader in the council’s history after succeeding Stephen Parnaby in May 2019.

Mike Stathers was elected deputy leader of the Conservative group and will immediately take over the role of deputy leader of East Riding of Yorkshire Council, replacing Jonathan Owen.

Coun Burton said: “Over the past 14 months, my main focus as leader of the council has been to enhance our communities, embrace commercialism and the ever-changing world of technology, as well as delivering a sound financial strategy.

“We have made real progress in these key areas of work and, with the support of our residents, businesses and partners, we have also tackled the biggest challenge in living memory in the Covid-19 pandemic, during which we have continued to deliver vital services to our communities and protect our most vulnerable residents.” He added: “In view of the challenging financial circumstances resulting from the pandemic, we now need to continue to deliver a strong economic strategy and create an environment where external investment flows in and helps to energise our residents, give them ambition and a sense of worth.”

Coun Stathers said he was proud to be deputy leader “at what is a very challenging time for the council”.