Christchurch City Council Deputy Mayor, Andrew Turner, is bowing out of public life after 12 years in local body politics – including six in the Deputy role.
Councillor Andrew Turner (pictured) says he is looking forward to a life with greater freedom and flexibility.
“One of the things I’ve enjoyed about being Deputy Mayor is the breadth and huge variety of work,” he said.
“There is a large amount of responsibility on the one hand, but also the opportunity to get out and see everything that happens in all the different corners of our city.”
He entered office shortly after the September 2010 earthquake as a member of the Lyttelton Mt Herbert Community Board and served three years on the board before being elected Councillor for the Banks Peninsula ward in 2013.
In 2016 he stood unopposed and was appointed Deputy Mayor that same year, a role he’s continued to hold following re-election in 2019.
He says he is now looking forward to stepping back from the limelight and taking on a variety of governance and management roles.
“I always said that I would finish while I was still enjoying the role and while I felt I was still effective,” Cr Turner said.
“The life of the city runs in cycles and I’d like to think we have some clear water in front of us now, it feels as though we’re at a natural turning point.
“It is important to know when to step up – but it’s equally important to know when to step down.
“For me personally it’s time to move on and do some new things. It’s time for us to encourage a new generation of leadership and I’m particularly pleased to see what I consider to be some excellent and highly motivated young people standing for election,” he said.
