On Wednesday, I will become the new Leader of Ipswich Borough Council. It’s an honour, and I feel humbled to have the trust and backing of my fellow councillors. I’m looking forward to building a better Ipswich with a mixture of excitement and trepidation.

I was first elected in 2000 and became an Executive councillor in 2011, making me one of the most experienced councillors around. This gives me a background to draw on when tackling the issues that will come up and a familiarity with the mechanics of running the council. Of course, the Leader role is a step above anything that I have done before and I am under no illusion that the hardest problems end up on the Leader’s plate!

I was brought up on a council estate in a small town (Elgin) in the North of Scotland, was the first in my family to go to university (Aberdeen) before I moved to Ipswich to work for BT on Research & Development. I have been in Ipswich for 35 years and enjoy living here. I could have moved away with work however, there are many reasons to stay. I have enjoyed the towns sports, history, pubs, clubs, culture, music, the Waterfront and a relaxed atmosphere, and see no reason to move anywhere else.

I have mainly worked here with BT, although I have also worked for a dot com start-up, spent six months as a caseworker for Chris Mole MP and spent four months in Ghana, as a volunteer project manager, mainly at a refugee camp. These experiences give me a broader background, from outside politics, to help me with the challenges of leadership. I left my job at the end of April to concentrate on my new role as Leader.

I joined the Labour Party in 1992, because the Tory party was running down health and education. That was thirty years ago, but what has changed? The same old Tories are still running down public services.

I believe that I have made a difference on the Council, specifically around provision for homeless and rough sleepers, provision of three bed fully wheelchair accessible accommodation and tackling fuel poverty in council housing. I’m particularly proud of the Housing First scheme for entrenched rough sleepers and the Whitton micro-homes for helping rough sleepers “move-on” to a better future.

I think I have the background, experience and skills to take the role forward, building on David Ellesmere’s legacy – and what a legacy: first council house building for a generation, conversion of the old sugar beet factory into the Eastern Gateway business park, major refurbishment of Ipswich Museum underway, bringing The Botanist to town, moving towards a carbon neutral council, not to mention free brown bins and the young person’s summer I-Card.

What will I do?

I am not on my own, as I have the support of 32 great Labour councillors. They bring a wealth of experience, from both inside and outside the council, and from many walks of life. I will be looking to them to step up and help me deliver for the people of Ipswich. We make a great team and will be focused to deliver on our priorities: A thriving Town Centre, building houses, tackling climate change, tackling the cost of living crisis and improving health & wellbeing across the town.

There will be a need to keep the council on a sound financial footing, this is likely to lead to some difficult decisions, as money will be tight. It’s not all doom and gloom though. We must make best use of the £25 million Towns Fund money, move forward with a new aquatics centre and sports provision, work to improve the cultural and leisure offer, maintain and enhance the parks provision and maybe even see the Waterfront finished!

I will ensure that the Labour run council will continue building a better Ipswich, providing a great environment for people in the great town of Ipswich.