Cllr Val Fendley has said that she is "delighted" to have been elected as Mayor of Ramsey, despite what she described as a "challenging" first meeting.

In her first public statement as Mayor of Ramsey, Cllr Fendley said that she is "passionate" about "local people having a say in decisions that effect them".

She said she hopes to bring about change in the community.

The Mayor also addressed the controversy surrounding the Full Council Meeting on May 9, which was her first meeting as Mayor.

She said it was a "challenging meeting" with a high resident attendance, owing to the "frustration and high emotion" around the introduction of a 20mph zone in Ramsey.

Cllr Fendley said that she listened to all of the points that were raised in the meeting and had hoped to share some information in light of the 20mph zones - she didn't get the chance to after the meeting temporarily closed over "disorderly conduct".

The Mayor also reviewed Facebook posts discussing the 20mph zones to monitor how they performed. This included an informal poll asking users what they think. 

Cllr Fendley said that it's "sad to hear" that many people in favour of 20mph zone fear speaking out on social media due to fear of intimidation. 

In her statement she said: "I also thought about the many people in favour of the 20mph, some of whom have spoken to me personally, rather than advertise themselves on public platforms for fear of intimidation."

Recommended Reading: Ramsey Town Council statement after 20mph chaos at meeting

She added that there are "lessons to be learnt" around the poll which allowed individuals to vote more than once, saying that "it should have been more robust".

Cllr Fendley confirmed in her statement that while Cambridgeshire County Council were responsible for the formal consultation, the Ramsey Town Council Clerk is organising a meeting so she (Cllr Fendley) can understand the implementation process better.

She signed off her statement by saying: "I am in no way promising any change to what has been implemented, that is most definitely not within my gift."

Read Cllr Val Fendley's statement in full here.