The Mayor of Rushmoor, Councillor John Marsh, has handed out long service awards to a number of long serving councillors.
They were:
20 Year Medal
Councillor Diane Bedford was elected for St Mark’s in 2002 and has served on many committees and panels during her 21 years’ service. Diane is currently Vice-Chairman of the Overview and Scrutiny Committee and previously was the Cabinet member for Leisure and Youth from 2004 to 2013. She was Deputy Mayor in 2013/14 and Mayor in 2014/2015.
Councillor Craig Card was first elected in 1991 and represented Mayfield until 2010. After a spell away from the council, Craig was re-elected in St Mark’s ward in 2022. Over the years, he has served on most committees, panels and sub-committees, and has also represented the council on many outside groups and bodies.
Peter Crerar was elected in 2003 for Manor Park and has served on many of the council’s committees and panels, including the Policy and Project Advisory Board. He was Deputy Mayor in 2011/2012 and Mayor in 2012/2013.
Councillor Paul Taylor was elected to the council in May 2002 and has served the residents of Knellwood ever since. He was Chairman of the Leisure and Youth Panel from 2003 until 2007 and has been the Cabinet member for Corporate Services since 2007 (except for one year when he was the Cabinet member for Customer Experience and Improvement). Paul has also represented the council on several outside groups and bodies.
Councillor Steve Masteron was elected to the council in 1991, serving the residents of Grange ward until 1995. His second term of office was from 2004 until 2012, and his current term started in 2015 for Cove and Southwood. He is currently the Cabinet Champion for Climate Change and has previously been the Cabinet member for Safety and Regulation and Chairman of the Licensing and General Purposes Committee. Steve was Deputy Mayor in 2017/2018 and then Mayor in 2018/2019.
30 Year Award
Councillor Charles Choudhary has served 31 years in local government. He represented Rowhill (formerly Alexandra Ward) from 1987 to 1995 and again from 2000 to the present day. Charles has served on just about all of the council’s committees and panels, including being the Cabinet member for Concessions and Community Support from 2005 until 2013. He has served as Mayor twice, in 2001/2002 and in 2020/2021. He was elected to Hampshire County Council in 2013 and was their Vice-Chairman in 2018/2019 and Chairman from 2019 to 2020.
Councillor David Clifford has served 32 years in local government. He was elected to the council in 1991 and has represented Queen’s, Wellington and Empress wards and Manor Park since 2016. David has been on most of the council’s committees, sub-committees and panels over the years and most notably he has been Leader of the council since 2016. He was Mayor in 1999/2000.
35 Year Award
Councillor Mike Smith has served 35 years in local government. He was originally elected in 1978 for Farnborough North ward and served until 1979. His second term of office was from 1982 until 1994 when he was elected for Grange ward, and again in his third term of office from 2000 until 2012. After a period of two years, Mike was elected for the Empress ward. During his time on the council, Mike has served on many of the council’s committees, and most recently as Chairman of the Overview and Scrutiny Committee.
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