Cllr Muhammad Sadiq has been elected the new Mayor of Sutton.

He was elected unanimously at a meeting in Sutton Civic Centre last night. At the ceremony on 18 May, Mayor Sadiq said:

“I am very honoured to have been elected as Mayor of Sutton which I accept with great gratitude. I am very grateful to my colleagues for giving me the opportunity to represent Sutton and to continue to serve the residents of Sutton, in my opinion the best borough to live in.”

He also took the opportunity to thank the former Mayor, Cllr Arthur Hookway, the Mayoress Su Hookway, their supportive family and Deputy Mayor Cllr Court “for their excellent work” during the last year. “They will be a hard act to follow. However, we will do our best,” Mayor Sadiq said.

In his final speech as Mayor, Cllr Hookway said:

“I wish my very honourable colleague and friend Cllr Muhammad Sadiq every possible best wish for his term as Mayor and hope that he enjoys and cherishes the privileges that this unique role gives you, as much as I did.”

Mayor Sadiq lives in Sutton with the Mayoress and his two children. He has served the local community since 1975 and his passion for Sutton is demonstrated through his contribution to the local life in many ways, particularly around his work as chair of the Curriculum & Standards Committee and as a member of the Finance Committee at a local primary school, where he has served as a school governor for the past eight years.

Mayor Sadiq said his theme for the next year is supporting local charities as much as possible. The two charities he has chosen are St Raphael’s Hospice in Cheam and The Change Foundation in Beddington.

He is keen to hear from any groups or organisations (large or small, formal or informal) within the borough that would like himself, and possibly the Mayoress, to visit and both meet with and support them.

The new Deputy Mayor is Cllr Joyce Melican and the new Deputy Leader of Sutton Council is Cllr Simon Wales.