New Leader of Sutton Council chosen 

Councillor Barry Lewis has been formally chosen as the new Leader of the London Borough of Sutton at a meeting of all councillors this evening (20 May 2024). 

Speaking at the meeting, Councillor Lewis set out his immediate priorities for the Council and Sutton as:

focusing on the everyday things that matter to our residents
dealing with the climate emergency and bringing down carbon emissions. 
tackling the cost of living crisis, ensuring support for residents who are most in need, as well as encouraging strong and fair economic growth and new jobs in Sutton.
getting a fair deal for Sutton on transport investment and fair funding to protect vital services for our residents.

At the meeting Councillor Lewis also paid tribute to Councillor Ruth Dombey, who has stood down as leader after twelve years. He highlighted her leadership, vision and passion which have transformed Sutton into the place it is today - where more and more people and businesses are choosing to call their home - and vowed to build on her achievements.

He focused especially on Councillor Dombey’s work on putting the London Cancer Hub in Belmont on the world map; on bringing new life, jobs and activities to the borough’s main town centre to ensure it remains vibrant and sustainable; and on maintaining council support for the most vulnerable in the borough despite the huge ongoing financial challenges for local government.    

New Leader of the Council, Councillor Barry Lewis, said: 
“I’m honoured to have been chosen as the new Leader of Sutton and my priority will be to focus on the everyday things that matter to our residents while driving forward the Council’s ambitious plans to take action on climate change, get a fair deal for Sutton and support our residents in the cost of living crisis. 

‘’To achieve what our residents expect of us, it’s more important than ever that we are an efficient, well-run council and we find new ways of doing things. I’m proud of our work so far on changing how we provide and protect our children’s centre and library services and I look forward to agreeing other innovative schemes in the future.

‘’We know we face difficult decisions ahead to ensure a balanced budget and I will continue Sutton’s fight for a better funding settlement. 

“But despite these challenges, Sutton will continue to be known as one of the greenest boroughs in the capital and we will in future be known as the London borough defeating cancer, attracting industry and creating jobs in the life science sector. A place where people want to live, work and raise a family and where more and more residents and businesses are proud to call their home.”