Ely Standard reporter, Seb Pearce, went to meet the city’s new mayor, Councillor Ian Lindsay, to find out what he has planned for the coming year.

Ely Standard: The new Mayor of Ely, Ian Lindsay,The new Mayor of Ely, Ian Lindsay, (Image: Archant)

Cllr Lindsay, who has been a member of City of Ely Council for two years, took over from Cllr Lis Every at the annual council meeting; the former RAF physician says he was honoured to become mayor.

He said: “It’s a great privilege. I’ve always said that somebody has to do it, and I’ve not been in the council very long, so it’s all moved on very fast.

“I became a councillor because I’ve always wanted to be involved in how things are run but I had to give it some thought as becoming mayor wasn’t necessarily what I was planning to do.

“I love Ely; I’ve lived here for 16 years and I saw it as a big opportunity.”

Cllr Lindsay comes into the role after Cllr Every’s two years at the helm, and the new mayor says he has a lot to live up to.

“Lis did a great job,” Cllr Lindsay said. “She’s very popular in the city, and I likened her to a dynamo in my speech, in the way she keeps on going and going.

“I’m going to meet with her to discuss how we’re going to carry on all the things she’s done and also how my ideas will come in.”

Cllr Lindsay was born in Cambridge, and has three children – all of whom were boarders at King’s Ely – and six grand children.

He and his wife, Suzanne, who he met after a ‘tennis court booking mix-up,’ have lived on Station Road in the city since the early 2000s.

The new mayor has experience in medicine, having spent 10 years in private occupational health medicine after his days in the RAF.

Since then, Cllr Lindsay has sat on all three of the council’s committees, and is also a trustee of St Peter’s Church, Ely Museum, the Paradise Centre, the East Cambridgeshire Access Group and the Ely Ribe Twinning Association.

Cllr Lindsay, who is also the director of the Ely Outdoor Association, believes the future of Ely is bright, and wants to help improve infrastructure in the city.

He said: “We want to make Ely a highly desirable place to live. There are only eight city councils in the country, and when I made my speech on Monday I said that I want Ely to be the best out of the eight.

“We obviously have to plan for the Ely North development and we must be well organised in order to take responsibility for that money.”

Cllr Lindsay, a keen sportsman, also thinks the proposed building of the Ely Leisure Centre on Downham Road will be vital for the growth of the city.

“I’ve always been an active person,” he said. “I’ve played squash and recently I’ve got back into tennis. I’ve played sports since a young age, and old habits die hard. “I’ve recently moved on as secretary of Ely Tennis Club, and I’m director of the Ely Outdoor Association, so sport has always been something I believe in.

“I think the Ely Leisure Centre, with its indoor and outdoor facilities, will be terrific for the city. I’m a big supporter of it.

“There’s been a lot of talk over what shops and restaurants will be there, and although I wouldn’t go out and tell people to eat at places like McDonald’s every day, I firmly believe in giving people the freedom to make their own choices.”