Councillors to gather for first event in a year
NEW MAYOR WILL BE APPOINTED AT SOCIALLY-DISTANCED CEREMONY THIS WEEK
COUNCILLORS will gather for their first in-person council meeting for more than a year when they appoint Calderdale’s new Mayor next week.
The last time they met in person was at Halifax Town Hall in March last year, when leader of the council, Clr Tim Swift spoke to them about the seriousness of the impending Covid-19 pandemic.
Since then, meetings have been held in virtual form, and able to be watched by the public in real time or afterwards on the council’s YouTube site.
The meeting and ceremony means a move away from Halifax Town Hall to the equally splendid but more spacious Halifax Minster to allow for social distancing on Wednesday where the council’s annual meeting and Mayormaking ceremony will be held from noon.
Electing the new Mayor is the first item in the agenda at the event, which is traditionally invitation only for the ceremony with family and friends of the new civic head joining the 51 councillors and senior officers for the special occasion.
This will see Clr Dot Foster (Lab,
Sowerby Bridge), who became Mayor in May 2019 and has remained in post through the Covid-19 pandemic, hand over the chain of office to the Mayor of Calderdale for 2021-22, Clr Chris Pillai (Con, Rastrick).
Clr Pillai will announce that his wife Mrs Beverley Pillai will be Mayoress as his consort for the year.
The couple already have some experience of what the roles involve as they were Deputy Mayor and Mayoress to Marcus Thompson and Nicky Chance-Thompson, Calderdale’s civic heads in 201819.
Following the Mayor’s inaugural speech his Deputy Mayor will be appointed – this will be Clr Howard Blagbrough (Con, Brighouse) who will announce his Deputy Mayoress and consort for the year will be Catherine Kirk.
Again, Clr Blagbrough and Ms Kirk have plenty of civic experience to call on, as they were Mayor and Mayoress of Calderdale in 2016-17.
After thanks to Clr Foster and her Deputy Mayor, Coun Angie Gallagher (Lab, Elland), civic allowances for the new civic heads will be approved.
The annual meeting will go on to deal with key appointments, beginning with councillors elected in the May 6 elections signing the necessary declaration of acceptance of office and thanks being expressed to retiring councillors.
Next councillors will have to elect a leader - currently it is Clr Swift (Lab, Town) - who will then number and name their Cabinet members and responsibilities.
Scrutiny boards, committees and panel sizes and allocation of seats by party follows these and Chairs and Deputy Chairs appointed.
Representatives on outside bodies, for example West Yorkshire Combined Authority, will also be agreed.