New Lord Mayor of Armagh City, Banbridge and Craigavon speaks of her ‘great honour’ at taking up position

At the council’s AGM on Monday, June 5, Councillor Margaret Tinsley was nominated to the position of Lord Mayor and Councillor Sorcha McGeown was nominated to the position of Deputy Lord Mayor.

This means the first Lord Mayor of the new Council term is from the DUP while the first Deputy Lord Mayor is from Sinn Fein.

Councillor Tinsley was first elected to the council in May 2014 and represents the Craigavon district electoral area.

During her time on the council, Cllr Tinsley held the position of Deputy Lord Mayor for 2019-2020 and chaired both the leisure and community services committee and the strategy and community planning committee.

An active member of her local church, Cllr Tinsley is also a volunteer with Reach and is married to the former Mayor of Lisburn Council, Alderman James Tinsley and has two children, James and Anna.

Announcing the nomination of Councillor Margaret Tinsley as the borough’s new Lord Mayor, DUP group leader Alderman Mark Baxter described his party colleague as a “formidable lady” who “gets things done”.

“She is diligent, loyal and a very sound Christian lady who puts God first in everything she does and I have no doubt in the incoming year that will be no different,” said Ald Baxter.

“She is very passionate about her family and young people and is always working with people throughout the community. She does a huge amount in her community so it is a great privilege for me to nominate Margaret tonight and elevate her to the position of Lord Mayor in this borough.

“I wish her well and also extend my wishes to her husband James, her daughter Anna and son James and those family members here tonight, we wish you well as you maybe just won’t see as much of her over the next 12 months.

“I know Margaret will take this position with every sincerity the role requires and do the job to the best of her ability. I have no doubt she will do an excellent job.”

Addressing the chamber, the new Lord Mayor said it was a “great honour” to be elected the ninth Lord Mayor of Armagh City, Banbridge and Craigavon Borough Council and told the chamber she will do everything possible as Lord Mayor to “support people, promote the work of our community groups and recognise those individual acts of kindness”.

The Lord Mayor’s chosen charity this year will be Charis Cancer Care, located on the Lough Fea road outside Cookstown.

Explaining her decision, the Lord Mayor said: “The centre has a great team of staff and volunteers who offer anyone over the age of 18, who has been diagnosed with cancer, every form of support you could imagine.

“I had never heard of this charity until last year when one of my closest friends was diagnosed with breast cancer. She is now doing really well.

“During her cancer journey she was offered treatment, support and advice by Charis throughout this time. She was offered a session of reflexology and invited to take a friend along with her and I was very blessed to accompany her for six months during this time.

“It is very hard to describe how much it lifted my friend each month and just what this centre did for her. It costs approximately £400,000 a year to run and I hope to work closely with them to raise funds and support all they do.”

The Lord Mayor then brought her speech to a close by asking the Lord to give her the “health, strength and wisdom” required to fulfil the role as those who have gone before her have done.

Nominating Councillor Sorcha McGeown as the Deputy Lord Mayor, Councillor Catherine Nelson said it gave her great pride to nominate “her bestie” to the role.

Addressing the chamber, the Deputy Lord Mayor said she was “honoured” to have taken up the role and thanked the outgoing Lord Mayor and Deputy Lord Mayor for their efforts over the past 12 months.

“I also want to thank offer my congratulation to the new Lord Mayor, Cllr Margaret Tinsley and I look forward to working with you,” she said.

“I look forward to working with everyone to deliver on the issues that matter to the people of this council area. As a young woman I want to be the voice of equality and integrity for the people of this borough.

“I witness on a daily basis the challenge workers and families face because of the cost of living crisis and I want to make a positive difference.

“Working together we can build a better future for all our people and make this place a great place to live and work.”

Bringing his speech to a close, the Deputy Lord Mayor thanked her family and her party colleagues for their support and told the chamber she would not be sitting here today without them.