THE first Town Mayor of Ilkley was elected at the inaugural annual meeting of Ilkley Town Council.

Cllr Steve Butler was elected as Town Mayor and Cllr Mike Gibbons was elected as Deputy Town Mayor, both unanimously. Cllr Kate Butler was appointed as the Mayoress. All will hold these positions until May 2019.

The original resolution to adopt the status of a Town Council was made at the meeting of the Parish Council in December 2017, to take effect at the Annual Meeting on May 21. In his remarks following his Declaration of Acceptance of Office, Town Mayor Butler welcomed the members of the public and invited guests, including the Lord Mayor of Bradford Cllr Zafar Ali and the Lady Mayoress Mrs Zeabun Zafar, to the historic event. He went on to reflect on the future, avowing that the Town Council should work hard to make Ilkley a better place to live. He stressed the main impact of the change to Town Council would be to: "make a real difference to how others perceive the town and its representatives. When we speak we will be listened to more carefully and get better results."

He also announced that the first ever Ilkley Town Mayor’s Charity would be Nell Bank Outdoor Education Centre and a small collection was made.

At the conclusion of the formal agenda items, which effectively brought the new Town Council in to being to replace the old Parish Council, Town Mayor Butler proposed a toast to mark the historic event: "to the prosperity of Ilkley, long may it last."