New roles for Exeter councillors

Jobs rejigged after local elections

The leader of Exeter City Council, Phil Bialyk, has shaken up his top team following the local elections.

A reallocation of the roles and three former members retiring to the backbenches has led to a significant change on the Labour-run executive, with three new portfolio holders.

Councillor Josie Parkhouse takes charge of the city’s leisure services and physical activity, despite only being elected as a councillor this month.

Cllr Martin Pearce has been handed the communities and homelessness prevention brief, while Cllr Barbara Denning is now the portfolio holder for council housing development and support services.

Cllr Laura Wright remains deputy leader but now heads up culture, corporate and democratic services, Cllr Ruth Williams takes charge of recycling and waterways, and Cllr Amal Ghusain moves to city management & environmental services

Cllr Duncan Wood has left the leisure brief, during which time he presided over the new St Sidwell’s Point and revamped Riverside leisure centres, to become the portfolio holder for climate change.

In addition, Cllrs Naima Allcock and Zion Lights have been named ‘member champions’ for community engagement & support services, and net zero Exeter 2030, respectively.

Cllrs Rachel Sutton, Bob Foale and David Harvey have all retired from the executive, leader Phil Bialyk said at Tuesday night’s annual meeting, held at the historic Guildhall.

The council leader thanked them and said his new team was “young, enthusiastic and will re-energise us.”

The self-named ‘Progressive Group’ – made up of the Green Party, Lib Dems and Independent – took their seats at the front of the opposition benches, having replaced the Conservatives as the largest opposition group on the council at the recent local elections.

Cllr Bialyk welcomed the three new Green councillors elected on 5 May, all of whom won their seats from Labour.

But he added: “There’s a lot of work to do and I did quote to Cllr Diana Moore [Progressive Group co-leader] that democracy was the subjugation of the minority by the majority. But remember, democracy is not always getting your own way either.

“So, I think we’ll have good, interesting debates and now we’re back from covid, I trust we can have that in good spirit.

“It’s okay to differ with one another and it is okay to have argument and we can disagree, but let’s not be disagreeable and I think that is a message that I think everybody will support,” he said.

Following the election earlier this month, Cllr Moore said: “We will continue to ask questions, provide a critical and constructive challenge, and bring forward positive solutions to the challenges that residents and the city face.”