Lord Mayor Sally Capp reveals the life-changing moment that set her on course to the city’s top job

MELBOURNE Lord Mayor elect Sally Capp has revealed for the first time the personal life-changing moment that set her on course to the city’s top job.

EXCLUSIVE: Melbourne Lord Mayor-elect Sally Capp has revealed how a battle with cancer inspired her to reassess her life and work for the public good.

The former ANZ and KPMG executive said dealing with thyroid cancer and radiation treatment 12 years ago had prompted an awakening.

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“Having been sick for a little time ... you are absolutely forced to reflect on the things that are important to you,’’ she said.

Ms Capp left the corporate world behind and now, more than a decade later, she has become the city’s first female mayor in almost 30 years and the first directly elected.

New Lord Mayor Sally Capp. Picture: Nicki Connolly

In an interview with the Herald Sun, the new mayor:

PROMISED “bold and authentic” leadership. Mistakes were inevitable, but “business as usual is not going to help”;

INDICATED she wanted to stay on until 2024 to achieve her long-term goals;

WOULD speak to Mr Doyle “at the right time’’; and

WOULD pursue economic development, the campaign’s forgotten issue.

Ms Capp will be sworn in at Town Hall on Thursday but will begin meeting council staff today.

She said learning that she had cancer had prompted a personal epiphany.

“In 2006, I had a malignant tumour and had that removed, and had radiation.

“It was a very scary time.’’

Ms Capp said that up to that point, she had been “highly motivated” by her ­private-sector career.

“I’ll never forget the day that I found out I had it, and everything that races through your mind.

Sally Capp at the Queen Victoria Market while she was on the campaign trail. Picture: Josie Hayden

“And I still get very emotional about it,” Ms Capp said. “The C-word makes shivers go down your spine. I ­realised at that point I really was seeking to do roles that had more meaning in them.’’

After successful radiation treatment, she took on the top job at the Committee for Melbourne, and became the Collingwood Football Club’s first female board member.

She also became the first woman to be Victoria’s Agent-General.

She said she had now cut ties with the Property Council, which she had led.

A 100-day plan is being worked on, based on her policy platform. This includes rebooting the Queen Victoria Market redevelopment, tackling homelessness, and re­assessing the city’s waste management system.

Ms Capp said she wanted to build trust and confidence in the mayoral office.

During the campaign, the independent candidate spoke to the other 10 councillors to establish their interests.

But she said she believed she had a public mandate, and was keen to make changes.

“I’ve worked with some massive egos in my life, and I’m completely up for it. I am the leader and I intend to lead,’’ she said.

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