Press Release from Buckinghamshire Council – 18 May 2023Senior political appointments have been confirmed by Buckinghamshire Council following its Annual General Meeting yesterday (17 May) held at The Gateway offices in Aylesbury. Martin Tett continues as Leader of the Council with his own set of portfolio responsibilities covering financial strategy, economic development, skills and employability, strategic infrastructure, policy and communications and the recovery plan for Buckinghamshire. Two deputy leaders, Angela Macpherson and Gareth Williams, will continue to provide support in addition to their own cabinet responsibilities. Taking up the important ceremonial position of Chairman of the Council for the forthcoming year is Patricia Birchley, with Mimi Harker supporting her as Vice-Chairman of the Council. Martin also announced his new Cabinet appointments, together with deputy cabinet member positions. The full list is below: Health and Wellbeing Portfolio Angela Macpherson – Cabinet Member and Deputy Leader Zahir Mohammed – Deputy Cabinet Member (Public Health) Climate Change and Environment Portfolio Gareth Williams – Cabinet Member and Deputy Leader Jilly Jordan – Deputy Cabinet Member (Environment) Planning and Regeneration Portfolio Peter Strachan – Cabinet Member Rachael Matthews – Deputy Cabinet Member (Town Centre Regeneration) Gary Hall – Deputy Cabinet Member (Enforcement) Homelessness and Regulatory Services Portfolio Mark Winn – Cabinet Member Carl Jackson – Deputy Cabinet Member (Regulatory Services) Education and Children’s Services Portfolio Anita Cranmer – Cabinet Member Joseph Baum – Deputy Cabinet Member (Skills) Transport Portfolio Steven Broadbent – Cabinet Member Peter Martin – Deputy Cabinet Member (HS2/EWR) Dominic Barnes – Deputy Cabinet Member (Transport Projects) Accessible Housing and Resources Portfolio John Chilver – Cabinet Member Tim Butcher – Deputy Cabinet Member (Resources and HR) Culture and Leisure Portfolio Clive Harriss – Cabinet Member Communities Portfolio Arif Hussain – Cabinet Member Thomas Broom – Deputy Cabinet Member (Community Safety) Speaking after the meeting, Martin said: “The last year has been one of the most challenging we have all had to face, not least the invasion of Ukraine, rising inflation and energy costs, cost of living pressures impacting residents and businesses, national infrastructure projects impacting locally, major increases in demand and complexity for both adults’ and children’s social care, a strong focus on the environment and climate change and housing affordability remaining a key issue for many residents, including young people and key workers. I continue to be extremely proud of the resilience of our residents, members, partners, and staff, who always rise to the challenge of delivering services and supporting residents. Together, we want to ensure that all Buckinghamshire residents have the opportunity to succeed in life, to play their part in and share in the success of the county. The year ahead promises to be another very challenging one…but we are up for it!” The meeting was also webcast and can be viewed here: https://buckinghamshire.public-i.tv/core/portal/webcast_interactive/772184 |