Dorset’s voice of business has thanked former BCP Council leader Vikki Slade and says it looks forward to working with her successor.
The Dorset Chamber’s reaction comes after Cllr Slade was removed in a vote of no confidence at a full council meeting.
Dorset Chamber is the county’s leading business support organisation, helping fight its corner nationally and drive the local economy.
Chief executive Ian Girling said: “The Chamber would like to place on record its thanks and gratitude to Cllr Vikki Slade.
“As an independent organisation with no political ties, we recognise that Cllr Slade has worked very hard for BCP Council and its residents at an extremely difficult time.
“We look forward to working closely with the future leader of the council. It is absolutely vital that the new leader and cabinet are fully engaged with business across all sectors.
“The economy was sluggish even before the Covid pandemic and as we start to see some signs of recovery it is more important than ever that we work together in the coming months to support our businesses and the local economy.
“As a Chamber we are county’s voice of business and we will be proactive in giving our support to the new leader to develop an even stronger working relationship between our organisations as we face some challenging times ahead.”
The Dorset Chamber is the only chamber in Dorset accredited by the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) and has an affiliated network of town chambers.
BCP Council deputy leader Mark Howell will head the authority until a new leader is elected on October 1.