Surprise on the cards at council AGM?

The bigger surprise is likely to be the election of Deputy Mayor which is expected to go to the SDLP for only the second time in the council's history.

It is being speculated the party's group leader Brian Heading will follow his late colleague Peter O'Hagan, who passed away at the end of last year, into the post.

Mr Heading, 53, has sat on Lisburn Council for six years and was Chair of the Leisure Services Committee from 2007- 2009 .

Most committee chairmen will remain in place, apart from Strategic Policy and Planning, with the chairmen of both of these committees - Councillor William Ward and Councillor Bill Gardiner-Watson - due to be replaced after serving for the maximum of two years.

Ahead of next week's meeting, former Mayor, Ulster Unionist Ronnie Crawford, has urged the DUP to enter into a partnership with the UUP.

"There was great rhetoric during the General Election campaign about the need for unionist unity," said Mr Crawford. "If there is a real desire for that elusive object, outside election campaigns, I invite the DUP to enter into partnership with the Ulster Unionists to run the council jointly as the two largest parties, for the next twelve months for the benefit of this city and its people.

"Too often both parties in the council and in the Assembly are doing their own thing whereas a totally integrated approach, setting aside narrow party interests, could create a united force charged with achieving agreed goals for the overwhelming benefit of this city.

"The UUP are prepared to set aside party interests in order to achieve this objective and we hope the DUP will do the same," he concluded.

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