West Devon Borough Council has announced the new mayor of West Devon for the next 12 months at today’s Annual Council Meeting.
Cllr Paul Vachon, ward member for Okehampton South, will be the mayor for the coming year. He accepted the chain of office from the outgoing mayor, Cllr Debo Sellis, after he was voted into the post by fellow councillors.
Cllr Vachon said: “It has always been a great privilege of mine to represent the people of Okehampton on West Devon Borough Council, so getting the opportunity to represent everyone in the borough as mayor is a true honour.
“It’s been wonderful working with Cllr Sellis over the last year as her deputy mayor. She’s worked very hard in the role, and I’d like to thank her for her work and congratulate her on her time in the role.
“I look forward to the year ahead, and I’ll make sure to have some fun as mayor, but the main thing for me is continuing to do the work of the borough council, represent the people that live here and making sure we continue to provide excellent services to them.”
Cllr Chris Edmonds, ward member for Tamarside, was appointed deputy mayor.
Each year the council holds an annual meeting to confirm its new mayor and elect councillors to its committees, including the Hub committee.
The following committee positions were confirmed during the meeting:
Hub Committee
- Cllr Mandy Ewings – Leader
- Cllr Mark Renders - Deputy Leader
- Cllr Adam Bridgewater
- Cllr Chris Edmonds
- Cllr Chris West
- Cllr Neil Jory
- Cllr Jane Elliott
- Cllr Jeff Moody
- Cllr Caroline Mott
Audit and Governance Committee
- Cllr George Dexter – Chairman
- Cllr Anne Johnson – Vice Chairman
Development Management and Licensing Committee
- Cllr Ric Cheadle – Chairman
- Cllr Steve Guthrie – Vice Chairman
Overview and Scrutiny Committee
- Cllr Patrick Kimber - Chairman
- Cllr Alistair Cunningham - Vice Chairman
Regeneration and Investment Committee
- Lead Hub Committee Member for Performance & Resources (Cllr Chris Edmonds)
Council Tax Setting Committee
Cllr Paul Vachon - Chairman