Standing ovation for Bristol Lord Mayor after returning to City Council
Cllr Paul Goggin spent weeks in a coma earlier this year, and says he's hoping to fully leave hospital later this month
The lord mayor of Bristol received a standing ovation as he returned to Bristol City Council after spending weeks in a coma. Labour councillor Paul Goggin said he was hoping to leave hospital in the “next couple of weeks”, but still faces a long road recovering from a serious lung condition.
Cllr Goggin was hit with pleurisy, inflammation of the lining of the lungs, after a bout of pneumonia in June. He was then placed into a medically induced coma and doctors feared for his life.
He came back to City Hall for a full council meeting on Tuesday, October 31, and was greeted by applause from councillors. He said his fiancée, Deborah Griffiths, was his “hero”, after she watched him unconscious and received the news that he might not survive.
Cllr Goggin said: “I’m a little out of breath, I brought my own cylinder of oxygen with me. Thank you for clapping that I’ve managed to stay alive.
“It’s Debs who’s my hero, she was the one who had to watch me in a coma, six to eight weeks of being unconscious, and being told constantly that I was going to die. She’s the strong one, not me, so the applause is for her.
“I’m having to go back to the hospital after this, unfortunately. I’ve snuck out, don’t tell anyone. I’m hoping to be out in the next couple of weeks, and then be back with you as and when. Soon, hopefully.
“But you’re in very capable hands. The other person who’s been absolutely fantastic in supporting me is the acting lord mayor, Cllr Steve Pearce. Thank you Steve. I’ll let you get on with the meeting now, I’ll stay here just for a little bit and then I’ll have to shoot off.”
The lord mayor is a ceremonial role in the council, and is responsible for chairing full council meetings and representing the council in civic occasions, such as granting new citizenships. Councillors tend to stay in the role for a year.