VETERAN politician Alan Cottam will retire as a Blackburn with Darwen councillor in 2016 after his ‘crowning glory’ year as Mayor of the Borough.

The 78-year-old Tory said being ‘First Citizen’ was the pinnacle of his public service career and provided a fitting end to a spell as an elected representative that started in 1997.

He revealed his intention to stand down when his current four-year as Livesey with Pleasington councillor ends in an exclusive interview with the Lancashire Telegraph.

Coun Cottam said he was prepared to work Christmas Day is necessary in his Mayoral role and that it was the ‘small’ events with local residents that gave him the greatest pleasure.

He also expressed his personal price at being ‘First Citizen’ for the centenary of the First World War and as the Cathedral Quarter and new town centre took shape.

Coun Cottam was born in Bury but often visited his grandparents in Blackburn as a child.

He said: “I came back to the town in 1970 to be chief engineer of the town’s Sun Paper MIll and became a councillor in 1997.

“I never dreamt of becoming Mayor.

“I’ve hugely enjoyed it.

“When I took the post I thought it would be all big important, events, but the real pleasure comes from the little events with ordinary residents.

“These are hugely important to the people involved.

“The obvious highlight was the visit to Buckingham Palace for a Garden Party where I and my Mayoress and wife Agnes met Prince Philip It doesn’t get much better than that.

“There are so many events to go to, large and small, that its a 385 day a year job, 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

“If I’m asked to go to an event on Christmas Day I shall do it. I never turn one down if I can get there.

"This has been the pinnacle of my political career, it’s crowning glory.

“I intend to stand down from the council in May 2016. I shall be 80 then and I’ve achieved all that I can. There is a time to go.”

As one of the key figures behind the town centre redevelopment, Coun Cottam said: “It’s really good to be here as the Cathedral Quarter and the new town centre are starting to appear in front of our eyes.

“I shall no longer be Mayor when its is finished but I played my part both when we were in power in the coalition and as opposition spokesman when I have put my two penn'orth in.

“When it is finished, Blackburn will have the most complete and compact town centre in the North-West and probably the country.”

As a former military policeman during the Cyprus emergency, his military links have come to the fore.

He said: “As a former soldier, I and delighted and proud to be Mayor for the centenary of the First World War in which lads from Blackburn and East Lancashire played such a part and also for the 70th anniversary of the D-Day landings.”

His military connections explain why one of his chosen charities is the Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen and Families Association (SSAFA).

The second is The East Lancashire Hospice on Park Lee Road Blackburn which does ‘amazing work’ helping people end their lives with dignity.