A KEIGHLEY councillor and community stalwart has spoken of his pride after being chosen as the next Lord Mayor of Bradford.

Zafar Ali, a Conservative councillor in Keighley Central, will take-up the post on May 15.

“It is a great honour for me and recognition of my work for the community,” he said.

“I will be the first Conservative British-Pakistani Lord Mayor in the whole of the north and that is something which makes me extremely proud.”

Cllr Ali, 70, of Cark Road, arrived in Keighley in 1965 from Gujar Khan, Rawalpindi.

He worked in a textiles mill and studied at the town’s college, becoming a senior technical tester.

But it is his immense range of work in the community, over several decades, that brought him into the public eye.

The father-of-seven and grandfather was director of the Racial Equality Council in Keighley and one of the first Asians to become a Justice of the Peace in 1987.

He’s also been involved in countless organisations including Victim Support, the former Council for Voluntary Services, Key House and the Citizens’ Advice Bureau.

And he has been a major player in numerous, successful campaigns.

He became a district councillor in 2007 and also served on the town council.

Nowadays much of his work is with Eastwood School – where he is a governor – but he remains a passionate member of other organisations, such as the Friends of Devonshire Park.

And his services are always in demand.

“A lot of groups and individuals seek my help and advice and I’m honoured at that,” said Cllr Ali.

“Unofficially I’m continuing to do a lot of the work I’ve been involved in over the years.

“For nearly three decades with the Racial Equality Council I worked on building bridges between communities and promoting harmony – and we had many successes – and that is one of my aims during my year as Lord Mayor.

“When there are opportunities to help bring people together, I will do that.

“I’m looking forward immensely to my year in office.

“The mayorship is impartial and that is a message I want to get out there.”

Cllr Ali is succeeding another Keighley Central councillor, Abid Hussain, in the role.