Outgoing Hampshire County Council leader warns 'age catches up with you' as he steps down from the role

Last month, Cllr Keith Mans told the council he would be stepping down from his position in May - though he will continue to represent the people of Brockenhurst.

Having steered the council through the Covid-19 pandemic and a gruelling £80m budget cut, Cllr Mans said 'the time is right' to stand down.

In an interview with the Local Democracy Reporting Service, he said: 'There comes a time when age catches up with you - I'm in my 70s now and can certainly feel that starting to happen.

'I never intended to stay more than four years and made that clear at the time. Then during Covid, I realised some of the decisions we were taking are long-term ones, and I felt it was the right time to step down.

'I could stay on, but I'm well past retirement age now and there are younger people who can take over this responsibility.'

In 1987, Cllr Mans was elected to parliament, representing Wyre in Lancashire and serving as personal secretary to the secretary of state for health.

He spent more than a decade in the RAF as a pilot, reaching the rank of Flight Lieutenant, and spent a further 28 years in the RAF reserves.

Later this year, Cllr Mans will celebrate his golden wedding anniversary, and has family from across the globe are travelling to mark the occasion with him.

On the topic of travelling, he plans to visit as many countries as he can during his free time.

He said: 'Travelling is something I've always enjoyed - I've visited more than 50 countries already in my life, and plan to visit quite a few more.

'My wife and I are going to Morocco soon, and we'd like to go to central Asia as well. Before for the horrifying war in Ukraine we were actually contemplating visiting Kyiv too.

'More than anything I want to step back to focus on the things I love to do, and the people I love to spend time with. I'm certainly looking forward to doing more gardening.'

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Cllr Mans became leader of Hampshire County Council in 2019, taking over from Roy Perry after spending six years as deputy.

In May, Conservative councillors will elect a new group leader, who will then be recommended to the county council as the new leader.

Cllr Mans insisted he has 'no idea' which councillors have thrown their names into the hat - but says there are some qualities that would be handy for the job.

'You need energy more than anything else,' he said.

'Increasingly you need a good grasp on technology and how to delegate - you cannot spread yourself too thin.

'You have to keep all the plates spinning and concentrate on the areas with the greatest risk.'

A message from the Editor, Mark Waldron

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