The new chairman of the county’s fire authority has pledged to raise the profile of the service during his time in the role.
Councillor David Minnery said it was a “huge honour” to be elected chairman at the annual meeting of Shropshire and Wrekin Fire Authority, which is made up of members of the county’s two unitary councils.
Councillor Minnery, who represents Market Drayton West on Shropshire Council, takes the reins from former chairman Eric Carter, who lost his seat on Telford & Wrekin Council in last month’s local elections.
Councillor Minnery has served on the fire authority continuously for 18 years, previously as a Conservative, and as an independent since 2021. He was most recently vice chairman under Mr Carter.
Councillor Minnery said: “My priority for the authority is to raise the profile of the authority within Shropshire because we have an excellent service and wish it to remain that way.
“A large part of our organisation relies heavily on the on call fire fighters who live and work in their communities and we need to do more to recognise their importance as well as the importance of their employers who release them for their vital roles.
“Having served continuously on the authority since 2005, and having twice spent time as vice chair, I am delighted to now be able to build on the work done by our previous chair – Eric Carter – who sadly lost his seat at the recent local elections.
“Eric was an excellent champion of the fire authority and worked closely with our officers and fire fighters.
“He will be a hard act to follow but I am looking forward to the challenge.”
At the start of the annual meeting, chief fire officer Simon Hardiman paid tribute to Mr Carter and said he would be invited to a future meeting so he could be formally thanked for his years of service to the organisation.
He added that a note of thanks would also be sent to former member Councillor Amrik Jhawar, who has stood down from the authority but remains a Telford councillor.
Councillor Richard Overton, who represents St Georges for Labour on Telford & Wrekin Council, was elected vice chairman of the authority.
Following the local elections, the authority remains in ‘no overall control’, with six Conservatives, five Labour members, three Liberal Democrats and one independent, Councillor Minnery, who sits with the Lib Dems.
The two vacant seats have been filled by Telford & Wrekin councillors Karen Blundell, for the Lib Dems, and Graham Cook, for Labour.
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