New leader promises to focus on providing high-quality services for residents

The new leader of Rochdale Borough Council says he will concentrate on ensuring that the council provides the high-quality public services that residents expect and deserve to see.

Councillor Neil Emmott, whose leadership was confirmed by fellow councillors at a meeting of the full council last night (19 May), says he will focus on residents’ priorities and putting people first.

The 58-year-old West Middleton councillor was born in Heywood and attended St Joseph’s RC Primary School in Heywood and Cardinal Langley before going on to study modern languages at Swansea University. Coun Emmott also studied at the University of Valencia and the Sorbonne in Paris and is fluent in five languages.

He was first elected to the council in 1986 at the age of 23 and served for eight years before leaving to pursue work opportunities in other parts of the country.

The former competitive figure skater returned as a councillor in 2010 for his second spell which continues to this day. He is a former chair of the Middleton Township Committee, has also managed community projects, and previously served as cabinet member for the corporate services and environmental management portfolios so knows how important good quality services are to people.

Councillor Emmott replaces Councillor Allen Brett who had been leader since 2017.

 

 

Councillor Emmott said: “The role of a council is to provide the high-quality services that residents quite rightly expect to see. It has been a difficult past 14 months for many people and we have provided a lot of support to families and businesses but as we continue to come out of the coronavirus situation we can refocus on delivering what matters most to people.

“I have always thought that we have a tremendous responsibility to the people who put us here. We owe it to them to work hard for them and deliver what we say we are going to deliver. We have achieved a lot as a council, particularly over the past year in terms of supporting residents through the pandemic, but there is a lot more to come.”

Under Councillor Emmott’s stewardship the council is aiming to put the climate emergency at the heart of its work by introducing measures like a new green procurement strategy and training for council staff.

Masterplans for the borough’s key towns will also be developed so that people living in each area know what the future looks like for the place they call home.

The council’s new cabinet committee was also confirmed at the full council meeting which took place at Middleton Arena.

The new cabinet will have nine positions compared to the previous eight.

Councillors Sara Rowbotham and Daalat Ali were reappointed as deputy leaders.

Councillor Susan Smith replaces Councillor Janet Emsley as Cabinet Member for Communities and Cooperation.

Councillor Rachel Massey replaces Councillor Keiran Heakin as Cabinet Member for Children’s Services and Education.

The cabinet position formerly known as 'Quality of Place' has been split into two roles - Environment and Facilities, and Highways and Housing - taken by Councillor Liam O'Rourke, and Councillor Daniel Meredith, respectively.

---

The cabinet positions were confirmed as:

• Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Health - Councillor Daalat Ali
• Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Climate Change and Sustainability - Councillor Sara Rowbotham
• Cabinet Member for Economy and Communications - Councillor John Blundell
• Cabinet Member for Finance and Corporate - Councillor Carol Wardle
• Cabinet Member for Adult Care and Wellbeing - Councillor Iftikhar Ahmed
• Cabinet Member for Children’s Services and Education - Councillor Rachel Massey
• Cabinet Member for Communities and Cooperation - Councillor Susan Smith
• Cabinet Member for Environment and Facilities - Councillor Liam O’Rourke
• Cabinet Member for Highways and Housing - Councillor Daniel Meredith