Cllr Mark Hunter to step down as Council Leader

Leader of Stockport Council, Cllr Mark Hunter, has announced his intention to step back from the position in May 2025.

Cllr Hunter (pictured with Greater Manchester Mayor, Andy Burnham, at the opening of Viaduct Park in 2024) has served as Leader of Stockport Council since May 2022, and has also served as Greater Manchester Combined Authority’s Lead for Children and Young People during that time. He will continue to serve as local councillor for the Cheadle Hulme South ward.

Cllr Hunter’s career as a public service stretches back over 45 years, when he was elected as a local councillor in Tameside in 1980, aged just 22, before moving to Stockport in 1990, and being elected to the council in 1996. He went on to become Leader of the Council from 2002 to 2005, and is the only person to have held the role on two separate occasions. In 2005, following a by-election after the death of MP for Cheadle, Patsy Calton, he entered Parliament and represented the Cheadle constituency as its MP from 2005 to 2015.

Reflecting on his time as Leader, Cllr Mark Hunter, said:

“Serving the people of Stockport has been a great privilege. After careful consideration, I have decided that this is the right time for me to pass on responsibility for leading the Council to the next generation.

“I would like to thank colleagues across the council past and present, partners and councillors from all parties who work tirelessly to ensure our borough has such a well-run local authority.”

A new Leader of the Council will be agreed by councillors at May’s Annual Council Meeting.