Bristol City Council appoints interim chief exec

Alex Seabrook - Local Democracy Reporting Service and Tim Dodd - BBC West of England, Bristol

4 June 2024 at 12:52 pm·2-min read

An interim chief executive has been formally appointed by councillors to run Bristol City Council.

Paul Martin will begin his role as the council's most senior civil servant on 10 June.

He was officially appointed at a full council meeting on Monday that lasted less than five minutes. Previously, a cross-party committee of councillors interviewed and selected Mr Martin.

The council's chief executive is politically neutral, unlike the leader of the council or a mayor, who are elected politicians in political parties.

The chief executive is also the council’s main policy adviser, manager and coordinator.

Mr Martin is taking the job on an interim basis, so might only be leading the council for a short time before a long-term replacement is found.

Previously, he was the chief executive of Wandsworth and Richmond-upon-Thames borough councils in London, and before that he was the chief executive for the Jersey government.

Mr Martin will manage the council through a period of transition, as the new committee system gets up and running, and will be tasked with advising and supporting councillors on delivering their policies for the city.

From 6 May 2024, a committee system at Bristol City Council was introduced after residents voted in a referendum to abolish the role of elected mayor.

For the first time in its history, the authority is being led by the Green Party. Southville councillor Tony Dyer is the leader, and Heather Mack is the deputy leader.

Stephen Peacock, the former chief executive, is leaving the council for a new role as the chief executive of the West of England Combined Authority. He had been in the top job for less than two years.

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