Leader of Reigate & Banstead Borough Council, Cllr Mark Brunt, confirms he will retire from the Council in May 2023

Cllr Brunt has served as a Conservative councillor for Merstham since 2004 (known as Hooley, Merstham and Netherne since boundaries were renamed in 2018).

Cllr Brunt explains; “Supporting residents through my work at the Council has been a huge and integral part of my life for almost 19 years. I’ve felt so proud to lead Reigate & Banstead Borough Council over the past five years, especially through the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic. I know that I am handing over the leadership of the Council in a stronger position to respond to the challenges ahead. I’m hugely proud of what we have achieved locally in responding to the needs of residents, delivering high quality and efficient services across the borough with a particular focus on our most vulnerable residents.”

“The time is now right for me to move on to new challenges and new opportunities away from the Borough Council and to step back and pass the reigns to someone else. Being a local councillor and the Leader has been very rewarding and even though I will no longer be a councillor I plan to continue to work and support activities within my community as a volunteer.”

Cllr Brunt will continue as Leader of the Council and a councillor for Hooley, Merstham and Netherne until the next local elections in May 2023. A new council Leader will be appointed, as voted for by all councillors, at Annual Council later that month.