UUP’s McKee takes vice-chairman role

UUP’s McKee takes vice-chairman role

27 May 2020

ULSTER Unionist councillor Harold McKee has been selected as the new vice-chairman of Newry, Mourne and Down Council.

The race for the deputy’s position was between the Mournes councillor — a former South Down MLA – and Rowallane councillor Robert Burgess.

Cllr McKee’s appointment comes weeks after the SDLP confirmed that another Mournes councillor, Laura Devlin, would be the district’s new first citizen, succeeding Sinn Fein’s Charlie Casey.

Cllr McKee said that it was an “immense privilege” to have been selected as the local authority’s vice-chairman and is looking forward to his new role.

First elected to the former Newry and Mourne Council in 2011, Cllr McKee said he has a proven track record of delivery for the benefit of the local community. 

“I believe in hard work, honesty and accountability in working with local people to raise and solve issues that they care about in their daily lives,” said the incoming vice-chairman.

“I know that the community is living through unprecedented times and many people are under huge pressure. I will certainly strive to do all that I can in my new role to work for everyone across Newry, Mourne and Down in what is likely to be an ongoing period of uncertainty.”

Cllr McKee also extended his congratulations to Cllr Devlin on her nomination as the council’s new chairwoman and said he is very much look forward to working with her.

The leader of the council’s UUP members, David Taylor, described Mr McKee as an “extremely dedicated public representative and a man of great integrity”.

He added: “Harold is very deserving of the honour of representing the district as deputy chairman and will put his heart and soul into the role.”

The formal appointment of the new chairwoman and her deputy will be confirmed at next Monday night’s annual meeting of the local authority which had been tipped to take place at Newry’s Canal Court Hotel.

However, issues in relation to the acoustics in the function hall where the meeting was due to take place forced council chiefs into an eleventh hour rethink.

The meeting will now take place at Newry Leisure Centre but not all of the district’s 41 councillors will be in attendance.

Only the leaders of the main parties and Independent councillors will be in attendance, alongside a number of council officers, with strict social distancing measures in place.

Traditionally, the annual meeting was held in the debating chamber at the local authority’s administrative headquarters at the Downshire Civic Centre in Downpatrick.

Ahead of the annual meeting, a mock AGM was held yesterday at Newry Leisure Centre to provide councillors with a run-through of proceedings. The mock meeting also provided council staff with an opportunity to test audio equipment.

Ahead of the AGM, the main parties have already selected which councillors will be appointed to the local authority’s various statutory committees and who will fill the top two positions on each.

Given the UUP’s decision to plump for Cllr McKee as the new vice-chairman, it is understood that Cllr Burgess will take the chairmanship of the local authority’s influential Planning Committee.

The Planning Committee has not met since March 11, but it will be back in business two days after the AGM, with the June 3 meeting also taking place at Newry Leisure Centre.

It emerged last week that the local authority is planning to harness the power of video conferencing facilities to resume its regular schedule of monthly meetings which have been suspended since mid-March as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.

A trial video conferencing meeting of the influential Strategic Policy and Resources Committee held recently was hailed a success by all those who took part.

Council officials are contemplating utilising a video conferencing software app which allows people to virtually interact with co-workers or employers when in-person meetings aren’t possible.