Wayne Bedggood Returns as Mayor

TONIGHT Wayne Bedggood returned unopposed to the position of Mayor following the 2016 Upper Hunter Shire Council elections and Maurice Collison was returned as Deputy Mayor.

Mayor Bedggood said as Mayor he is only as good as the Councillors around him and he is looking forward to the fresh enthusiasm of the new Councillors.

The New Council: Front: Mayor Wayne Bedggood and Deputy Mayor Maurice Collison. Back: Councillors Kiwa Fisher, Ron Campbell, James Burns, Lorna Driscoll, Sue Abbott, Lee Watts and Joshua Brown.

“I’d like to thank the other Councillors and the role of Mayor is not a lonely one, you are as good as the support you get from your Councillors and we really are the first amoungst equals, but I am also happy to lead the way as well,” said Mayor Bedggood.

“We have some good Councillors in there and there are some good new Councillors who are enthusiastic and intelligent and that fresh boost will come in handy for the big projects we are looking at over the next four years,” he said.

“There are not just the big projects, but also things like community engagement and we need to do more work on that as we will with some environmental sustainability actions,” he said.

“And of course efficiency in the workplace, working with other Councils is important, but first we need to get our own back yard in order policies and plans as a efficient as they can be, making sure what we are doing is effective and efficient,” Wayne Bedggood said.