Retiring council chief says 12 years is enough

1 December 2025

Martin HeathBuckinghamshire political reporter

News image — Pete Marland is stepping down as leader next year

Sam Read/BBC Pete Marland with short dark hair and a beard, wearing a white shirt, red tie, black jacket. He is standing in front of a yellow and blue wall. — Pete Marland is stepping down as leader next year

A council chief who is stepping down after serving since 2014 has said 12 years in the post is "enough for any leader".

Pete Marland, leader of Milton Keynes City Council, confirmed his departure after winning a Councillor of the Year award.

The Labour politician said elected positions should be time limited and post holders should not be able to "go on and on".

He will vacate his office in May 2026.

Milton Keynes achieved one of its most long-standing ambitions during Marland's tenure - the granting of city status.

He led Labour to its first majority on the council in almost 30 years in 2024.

Marland has also seen the authority's children's services rated as Requiring Improvement and made national headlines when he swore after a teenager's speech during a council meeting.

He said: "I think 12 years is enough for any leader.

"I genuinely believe that elected positions should be time limited. I don't think it's healthy that one person can go on and on and on."

A group of men and women at an election count. Some are holding red Vote Labour placards and some are punching their hands in the air to celebrate a win. They are in a large hall with pictures of the area on a screen behind them. — Labour won its first majority on the council for almost 30 years during Marland's leadership

Marland said he had spent the last 12 years "on call 24-7".

"On Christmas Day last year, I got a terrible phone call about a terrible incident that had happened in the city," he said.

"After 12 [years], it's time for the next generation."

He pointed out that, if he stood again, he would be 50 by the time his term finished.

"We are a very young city compared with others - I think that is a good thing because a council should look like and feel like the city it represents because that's how you get the best decisions."

MK Labour Party Pete Marland with short black hair and beard wearing a grey jacket, white shirt and pink tie. He is holding a trophy which is in the shape of a large brick with a plaque below stating "Yimby Councillor of the Year". He is standing in pink light in front of a pink screen and a dark wall below. — Marland picked up the Councillor of the Year award at the Labour Housing Awards

Marland said the accolade of Councillor of the Year at the Labour Housing Awards was a "testament to the amount of work we've done in Milton Keynes of positioning ourselves as a champion of growth."

He believes one of the council's greatest successes has been making sure essential facilities are put in place as houses are being built.

"In places like White House or Glebe Farm or even MK East that are now being built, you know three primary schools are already there, the leisure facilities are put in, and there's a new health centre on MK East even before the first resident has moved in," he said.

"That is what makes growth in Milton Keynes really good and a beacon for other places."

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