Leader nominated by Chief Executive

Regular readers will be aware of earlier stories about the nomination of Cllr Michael Jones for the 'Council Leader of the Year' award. In a recent announcement that he was withdrawing his nomination, Michael Jones was clearly unaware of who nominated him.

As the result of a Freedom of Information Request – not one that AudlemOnline submitted, we must add – it has been revealed that the nomination to recognise the work of Councillor Michael Jones was suggested independently of Cllr Jones by Cheshire East Chief Executive, Mike Suarez.

The nomination for the award of 'Council Leader of the Year' was compiled by a Senior Communications Officer and approved by the Chief Executive.

The nomination stated "Cllr Jones' exceptional leadership and committed vision has put Cheshire East on the map. In only three years as leader, he has transformed both the way the council operates and relationships with key partners, re-inventing the organisation and its place in local public service delivery.

"He has demonstrated again and again a single-minded commitment to put residents first, taking a long-term strategic view over what will benefit the borough – even when this means making challenging decisions in the short-term.

"The borough is already seeing the benefits of this vision, for example, with investment from Bentley Motors and at Alderley Park bio-hub and improvements in education and children's services."

Cllr Jones later withdrew his nomination, as reported on AudlemOnline, saying: "Whoever nominated me, I say thank you but I withdraw my name from the nomination because it should not be about me, it should not be about personalities, it should be about the job."

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