Outspoken councillor Marco Cereste (58) has outlined his vision for the future of the city, which is one of fresh business investment, improved education and a louder voice for councillors to ensure the necessary work in the city's wards gets done.

The ambitious plans come following his election as leader of the Peterborough Conservative Association at its annual meeting on Tuesday night, replacing Cllr John Peach.

It means Cllr Cereste, the ward councillor for Stanground Central, is likely to be sworn in as the new leader of the council at the local authority's annual meeting on Monday.

He said: "We need proper leadership which is focused on what needs to be done in the city, while being responsive to what our electorate says we need."

See also:
John Peach: Former leader's 'incredible time', 14 May 2009.
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"I decided to stand for leader of the Conservative Group, because I didn't think the leadership had the right vision for the future.

"In all modesty, my career and past speak for themselves – I am an entrepreneur and a businessman, and that is what this city needs. My approach to running the council will be the same approach I take to running one of my businesses. We need clear objectives, know where we want the city to go, and take it there.

"We can no longer accept mediocre or average – that can no longer exist in this city, full-stop. If we can't be the best we can be, then we shouldn't do it."

Bringing investment into the city will give an economic boost and give people a city to be proud of, said Cllr Cereste.

He believes that by working closely with the business community, the council will regenerate the city centre and he hopes to fill the council-owned premises in the centre which are currently standing empty.

He added: "We will welcome good investment from businesses and forge close links with Europe.

"We need to create an organisation and a culture that says 'come to Peterborough', because the investment will be good for the city and good for the people of the city."

Transparency and openness in all council decisions is imperative to keep the trust of the electorate, he added.

Earthquake donation promise
If the people of Peterborough do not want the council to make a donation to the victims of last month's earthquake in Italy, then it will not be made.
The promise from Cllr Cereste comes after a council pledge to donate £25,000 to the victims of the earthquake in the L'Aquila region triggered a mixed response.
Legal discussions which followed the pledge made during a full council meeting threw it into doubt. It was then agreed that the money could come out of unspent money from the Community Leadership Fund, which is a £10,000 grant given to each city ward for councillors to improve its social, economic and environmental characteristics.
Cllr Cereste, who is chairman of Peterborough's Italian Community Association (ICA), said: "We need to look at the lots of different ways in which we can raise the money to help the Italian community.
"We have fund-raisers coming up and anyone who would like to make a donation can through the ICA. If we can raise the money ourselves and the people in this city don't want us to spend the £25,000, then we won't."

Cereste vows to give councillors a louder voice
In what is likely to be a popular move among his colleagues, Cllr Cereste has vowed to give councillors a louder voice and do what he can to prevent the bulk of decisions being made by the council's ruling cabinet.

He said: "We need a more inclusive way of doing things and give councillors more of a say in what happens.

"Too much is decided by cabinet. It needs to delegate far more downwards to councillors. To be frank, the local councillors know more about what is happening in their wards and what is needed in their wards than the cabinet will ever know.

"So the quicker we can bring the decision-making process to them, the better it will be."

The businessman
Entrepreneur Cllr Cereste has built up a diverse business enterprise since leaving school, in the fields of antiques, magazine and newspaper distribution, property development and childcare. Having built up each business from nothing, he has passed them on to his son.

Although he has a passion for his role as city councillor, Cllr Cereste still finds time for his hobbies, which include clay-pigeon shooting, collecting samurai swords and spending time with his long-term partner, Maddalena, and two children, aged 26 and 32.

The couple also have another baby on the way.

Previous leaders

• Marco Cereste (C): 2009


• John Peach (C): 2006 to 2009


• Ben Franklin (C): 2003 to 2006


• Neville Sanders (C): 1999 to 2003


• Cathy Weaver (L): 1999

Education pledge
Education is high on Cllr Cereste's to-do list.

He explained: "We need to start doing all we can for pre-school children and work all the way through the age groups to university to deliver the best possible education we can.

"Investing in education and training will, in itself, lead to a healthier community, as well as a more prosperous community."