30 May - Praise where praise is due
The annual Mayor making meeting is always a fun evening for friends and
families of Councillors, especially those of the incoming and outgoing Mayors
and their Deputies. Yesterday’s seemed even more so than usual.
The Labour Group went through their customary routine of proposing one of their
own as Mayor but have yet to grasp the fact that generosity and equality is the
preserve of other Councils, not Bexley. It is doubtful that any Conservative was
even listening to the list of virtues possessed by Councillor Stefano Borella which were so
cleverly catalogued by Councillor Joe Ferreira.
The Labour Group’s token effort to appoint a Labour Mayor is nothing but a
charade. Everything is choreographed to perfection beforehand right down to the neatly fitting robes.
Tory disdain for a Labour Mayor did not however stop Labour Leader Daniel Francis from voicing my own view,
that outgoing Mayor Brian Bishop was the best we have seen for a very long time;
not a single awkward moment except perhaps when he muddled a name or two.
Usually some mischievous Councillor will reel off a list of the outgoing Mayor’s
weaknesses and mistakes, frequently not suitable for public broadcast in my
opinion but Councillor Eileen Pallen whose job it was to formally thank
Councillor Bishop for his year of service said that her research had failed to
reveal anything embarrassing at all. A surprise to no one.
The new Mayor Councillor Geraldene Lucia-Hennis was proposed by her
old friend and ward colleague Councillor Seymour (the Photo is from 9th March
2011) and looked resplendent in her scarlet outfit although the prize for
elegance must go to Councillor Richard Diment’s wife who had spent the afternoon
at a Buckingham Palace Garden Party and came down to earth with a bump by having
to sit next to me. A very pleasant lady if I may say so.
Mayor Geraldene Lucia-Hennis showed a side I hadn’t seen before with her
sometimes emotional acceptance speech. She won a well deserved round of prolonged
applause and perhaps a friend on Bonkers.
When the formal business of the meeting commenced all the signs were that she
intends to rival her predecessor’s professionalism.
Bexley’s new Chief Executive Jackie Belton failed to put in an appearance; Finance Director Paul Thorogood ably took her place.
Council Press Release.