Former Board of Deputies’ vice-president becomes new chair of Herts Council

Veteran Liberal Democrat councillor, retired judge, interfaith advocate and active member of Bushey United Synagogue, Laurence Brass has been appointed chairman of Hertfordshire County Council.

Councillor Brass, 77, a long-time resident of Bushey for over half a century, brings to the role a lifetime of public service, political engagement, and community leadership. Known affectionately by some as "Mr Bushey" for his decades of civic involvement, Brass was first elected to public office in 1973 as part of the inaugural group of borough councillors for the area.

A former judge specialising in asylum claims, Brass stepped back from party politics during his judicial career, but just a few short years after his retirement at age 70, he decided to “re-enter the fray of party politics,” he told the JC.

In 2021, he won re-election to the 78-person council representing north Bushey, and earlier this month won re-election with an increased majority.

As well as running the local bi-monthly newsletter “My Bushey News,” delivered to every household in the area, Brass is one of the county’s leading advocates for interfaith relations, work which he hopes will make “a defining feature” of his two-year tenure as chairman of the county council.

A busy public life, he said, is rewarding “because you meet and get to know so many people.”

He chairs the Hertfordshire Interfaith Forum, is a patron of Faith Matters, and is currently chairman of Neve Shalom, or “Oasis of peace”, a unique village in central Israel which fosters peaceful co-existence between Jewish and Palestinian citizens.

“Building bridges and trying to show people that we can live together is a core passion of mine,” he said. “I want to bring that message to the council and to the people of Hertfordshire, whom I am so greatly honoured to represent.”

Brass is also a prominent figure in the Jewish community, having served as vice president and treasurer of the Board of Deputies of British Jews. He is an active member of Bushey United Synagogue and is “very proud” that Bushey, where he and his wife, Hilary, two children and four grandchildren all live, boasts one of the “largest and most vibrant Jewish communities in the country.”

The myriad responsibilities he will have as chairman of Hertfordshire County Council, a role often referred to as the county’s “first citizen”, will be to represent the 1.3 million residents of Hertfordshire at a wide range of events and functions, including military ceremonies, school visits, marking anniversaries, and cultural openings. Next month, he will host a luncheon with the Duke of Edinburgh expected to attend.

One part of the job he is “very much looking forward to” is conducting citizenship induction ceremonies, in part due to his career as an asylum claims judge and the compassion he developed towards those who come to the UK seeking a better life.

“People’s pictures of themselves becoming British citizens will be up on mantelpieces all over the country,” he remarked. “And I’ll be in them, shaking their hands. That’s a real honour.”

Brass has contested five parliamentary elections, including two against Margaret Thatcher in Finchley, and once came within 6,000 votes of unseating her. A lifelong member of the Liberal Democrats since the 1960s – and the first non-Conservative chairman of Herts county council in 32 years – he remains committed to liberal values and hopes to contribute to “fixing the important issues” in local life.

“I feel very blessed to have stayed loyal to my liberal roots,” he said.