HIS party is in a slump nationally and Sunderland's Labour Group down by a total of five councillors after last week's elections.
But Councillor Paul Watson, the new man at the top, has nothing but optimism for the future.
The club owner and former shipwright has now taken over the helm of the Labour party after defeating his former boss, Councillor Bob Symonds, in a leadership contest at the weekend.
The vote also means he is set to take over as the leader of Sunderland City Council and continue with his party's plans for Wearside.
"It's obviously a massive honour and I'm pleased and hopefully I'm going to rise to the challenge.
"I promised everybody that whatever happens I would be 100 per cent and would give 100 per cent," he said.
"Obviously, I appreciate the recent election results and the mood of people and realise they want to see things different and want to see things change.
"What we need to do is speak to the people and get close to the people so we can see what they do want."
While being leader of the council was not "his childhood dream", he wanted the position because of the potential it gave him to help make Sunderland a better place.
He had entered politics, he said, because he wanted to make a difference, and any opportunities that came along had to be grasped.
Coun Watson said one of the most important jobs the Labour party has to do in Sunderland is to get out and speak to people and represent their interests on the national stage. And he also wants to see their opinions taking more of a front-seat in the decision- making process in the city. And this improvement in communication between citizens and councillors is one of his top priorities in moving the Labour Group forward.
"I think modernisation would be a strong word to use, but some aspects of the way we work are very much early 20th Century and I would like to think that we could change things to be more in keeping with the 21st Century," he said.
"I think walking round the streets for a couple of months every year sticking leaflets through the letter boxes of people who don't want to read them, where they get mixed up in a plethora of kebab shop and other leaflets, isn't really effective, is it?"
He added: "I think years ago people would elect a councillor because they thought he or she was particularly knowledgable, or clever or articulate, and that would be it.
"He or she would go down to the civic centre and their views were put forward
"But times have changed, we've changed, we've got to represent our own ward's view.
"Sometimes, I put forward a point of view because, hopefully, I'm part of my community."
Coun Watson said he felt the Labour party needed to work together more, particularly at a regional level to give it enough of a presence to drive change and seize opportunities.
"We need to work together as one party, not as a local party and a national party and a round the corner party," he said.
* Councillor Paul Watson is expected to be officially appointed as leader of Sunderland City Council at a full council meeting on Wednesday.


INSTEAD of heading to his office in the civic centre, Councillor Bob Symonds has been enjoying a spot of gardening in the sunshine this week.
After six years in the hotseat as leader of Sunderland City Council, the former electrician and personnel manager is back to being a ward councillor.
"As I've said many times, I was always willing to be leader of the Labour Group as long as the Labour Group wanted me," he said. "Somebody else came along and that's not a problem.
"I was leader of the council for six years and I feel the city has moved forward in those six years – the city's on the up."
While in office, Coun Symonds has seen progress made across the city, from developments in Sunniside to the £20million Aquatic Centre.
He has also helped to put Sunderland on the international stage, overseeing the signing of the Friendship Agreement with Washington DC. He said: "The first thing was the cinema – we got the cinema because of the council intervening with the car park.
"There was the refurbishment of the Empire, which I think is a great thing for the city. I worked with Pat Smith on the Sunderland model for the Academies and I'm very, very proud of that.
"The Aquatic Centre is another one that comes to mind. They're all building blocks that take the city forward – it's all part of what Sunderland is about."
"I'm still on the board of One NorthEast and I'm still a ward councillor – I've got two years term to run and I'll see what happens," he added. "I'm having a bit of a holiday next week and I'm looking forward to relaxing and taking things as they come. I know it's a bit of a cliche but I am looking forward to spending more time with my family."


A great deal to be proud of

LABOUR colleagues have this week paid tribute to former council leader Bob Symonds and wished him all the best for the future.
His successor, Councillor Paul Watson, said: "I think Bob is a man of integrity. I think he really, really tried and had quite a lot of success.
He added: "He has a great deal to be proud of and he can look back with a sense of achievement."
Chris Mullin, MP for Sunderland South, said: "I have great respect for Bob Symonds. He was in my experience a good leader. Down to earth, straightforward, decent. Under his leadership the city of Sunderland continued to make steady progress on all fronts. I wish him well for the future."
Fraser Kemp, MP for Houghton and Washington East, added: "I think we recognise the important contribution that Bob has made to the city over the last six years and I look forward to working with Paul for the mutual benefit of citizens of Sunderland."
l AS well as a new leader, the Sunderland Labour Group now also has a new deputy in the form of Labour stalwart Florence Anderson.
After serving as a city councillor for decades she has now become the first woman to hold the post at Sunderland.
"I'm very proud of that. I'm very excited about learning from Florence. She's extremely knowledgable and a big asset to the city," said new leader Councillor Paul Watson. There can be few local authorities that have such a senior woman in such a position."