THE new mayor of Wellington, Andy Govier, who was unanimously elected at the annual town council meeting on Monday, said he was proud of the town, which faced a lot of challenges but also had many excellent things going for it.

After thanking councillors for electing him, he said: "I have a number of ideas to bring forward to make the town an even better place to live than it already is.

"The town council does a good job and really punches above its weight."

Cllr Govier congratulated the outgoing mayor Peter Critchard on the excellent job he had done since becoming Wellington's first mayor in 2008. Up until that time the council had always had a chairman.

Thanking councillors and the public for their support over the past two years, Cllr Critchard said: "As a former coach driver I never imagined in my wildest dreams I would ever become the town's first mayor.

"There is a lot of good work going on in our town."

Read more on this story in tomorrow's WWN.