Cllr Hemsley, Leader of the Council thanked all elected members, old and new, for the hard work they had done during this very unusual past year. Members had risen to the challenges thrown up and adapted well to the new way of working, particularly with regards to virtual meetings. The positive steps taken by the Council had positioned it well to deal with the many decisions that would need to be made during the coming year and would ensure that they all strived to maintain Rutland as a great County and the envy of all.

Mrs Helen Briggs, Chief Executive thanked the Chairman for his kind words.

As this was the first Annual Council ever to be held virtually Mrs Briggs asked Councillors to be patient with the process and acknowledged that there could be a few teething problems. Mrs Briggs thanked the Governance team for the work that had gone into organising the meeting and the reports.