Cllr Lindsay Ferris used his speech at Wokingham Borough Council’s annual meeting on Thursday, May 24 to set out his vision for the year ahead.
First, he paid tribute to councillors no longer in the chamber including former mayor Rob Stanton “Many of us on this side consider him a real gentleman and he will be missed,” he said.
He also praised Beth Rowland who lost her South Lake seat in the local elections, fellow losers David Lee and Mark Ashwell and retiring councillor Bob Pitts. There was a welcome to new councillors, especially new Lib Dem councillors Helen Power and David Hare.
“The role of an opposition leader is to provide a credible alternative to the ruling group. I will not just oppose or be critical of what is proposed but I will provide constructive alternatives where appropriate and give cross-party support where it is deserved.”
Cllr Ferris also made mention of the party’s manifesto, which was launched last autumn, drawing attention to the party’s proposals to build homes for local people.
“We plan to build on these [ideas] and will develop and enhance our proposals over the coming months, so that residents of Wokingham Borough will have a clear opportunity to see what we would do if we ran this council.
“The recent local elections have given the ruling group food for thought and many residents will now expect action from the leaders of the council.
“We shall keep them to account.”
The Liberal Democrat team has now been restructured “so we now have shadow members of the group covering all the Executive positions. This will enable us to build up our knowledge and experience which is so vital in keeping the ruling group on their toes.”
