THE Government is to make it easier for towns and cities to elect their own mayors.
Despite Bury's decision to reject plans to install Greater Manchester's first London-style mayor, local government secretary and Salford MP Hazel Blears is enthusiastic.
Today she published a White Paper which suggests online petitions for a mayor and reducing the number of people needed to trigger a referendum from five per cent to as little as two per cent.
"I am keen to see more elected mayors. The public want to see a person they have voted for and can hold to account.
"We will also give mayors, where they exist, a bigger role in policing," said Ms Blears
There are only 12 mayors across the country, arguably the most famous is Boris Johnson in London, and the Government is keen to give local people more incentives to vote for their own mayor.
Only 18 per cent of Bury's voters turned out at the polls and rejected the mayor plan by a majority of over 5,000.
Ms Blears suggested that reports of the cost of the referendum, around £125,000, and suggestions that it would cost £2.5million for this extra tier of government, had put people off.
More engaged
The White Paper is also keen to get people more engaged in local politics.
"In many parts of the country local democracy needs a boost, with low turn out at local elections and people feeling they can't influence the way some issues are decided in their area, this needs to change," said Ms Blears.
The Government is proposing a legal requirement for councils to respond to local petitions - whether on the problem of abandoned cars, knife crime, antisocial behaviour or under-age drinking.
"If councillors don't do anything about the petition they will have to explain why in a debate in the town hall.
"There's a lot of cynicism about politics and the public must not only have the right to ask difficult questions, they should also have the right to demand answers," added the Salford MP.
The White Paper says that the bosses of local councils will have to face regular public hearings, quizzed by local families. And when council services go wrong people will have a right to get money back.
Ms Blears is also keen to make politics more relevant to young people -- and some of them will be given the chance to shadow Government ministers and elected mayors, so they can point out the impact of their policies on young people.
"Gain"
"As the best councils already show, local government has nothing to fear and everything to gain by involving local people in shaping and delivering services.
"When local people are given a greater say in how decisions are taken, not only do they feel more empowered but satisfaction with services rises as well," added Ms Blears.
The local government secretary Hazel Blears told MPs that one way of encouraging people to vote would be by entering them in a prize draw.
"This should not be construed as paying for votes or create a major new financial burden on councils," said Ms Blears.
"Instead, they should be viewed as an eye catching method to increase awareness and engagement, especially with young people who have never voted and might view the process with suspicion," she added.
Officials suggested that the prizes on offer might include free membership of local authority gyms or sports clubs.
Ms Blears said people should remember the great struggles for democracy in this country over the past.
"They should remember the families who gathered at St Petersfield in Manchester in 1819 to support parliamentary reform and were trampled and killed by the cavalry.
"Whenever we risk taking our democracy for granted we should recall the brave men and women on whose shoulders we stand and give thanks for their fortitude and courage," said the Salford MP.
As well as prize draws councils will be urged to run campaigns to register voters and to explain the role of a councillor.
"This might involve local councils forging partnerships with schools to use citizen education to advocate voting."
Ms Blears said the prize draw idea could attract young people whom she said were turning their backs on voting in elections in record numbers.
But the Tory local government spokesman Eric Pickles accused Ms Blears of trying to "bribe the voters" and of tearing up guidelines that prevent taxpayers' money being spent on propaganda.
"Perhaps the booby prize in such a prize draw would be a Labour councillor," said Mr Pickles.
What do you think? Have your say.
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We also need to be able to elect Police chiefs and council Chiefs as well as have a say in their pay increases, after all it is our money they are paid with.
If they don't come up to scratch then give them no increase in pay until they perform or give them the Alan Sugar treatment "your fired"
sucking up again are we????
she just cant stay out of the news!!!
More communist tinkering - we've lost, so we'll just change the rules until we win.
I guess people don't vote because they are disillusioned with politicians. Therefore it seems highly unlikely that the solution is to expand the cost of government by creating more politicians.
Lets be clear about the Bury Mayor election fiasco.
Bury Metro, MCC, The MEN, The Bury Times nor any of the potential / wannabe mayors made any effort what so ever to inform the electorate of what the change may mean to them.
The greatest blame of all goes to Bury Metro as they had no will to inform the people of bury yet they wrote off over £100,000 of our council tax money in saying nothing. They have wasted our money and acted dishonestly.
Mayor's or not? Who knows as nobody can or wants to tell you what it would mean to have one.
So she'll be backing Boris Johnson all the way.
how would Bury have elected a London style Mayor? There the Mayor works with all the individual borough councils allowing some kind of overall plan to operate;
Any Mayors here would just be doing the same job as a local council, maybe if we could vote for a Mayor of Greater Manchester, someone who could oversee planning and development for the whole region rather than just being concerned about one small bit, or the interests of one company
I've never understood why back in 1998 - New Labour gave Londoners a vote on reestablishing a "Greater" London Authority (with an elected mayor) - but the people of the other ex metropolitan counties, such as Greater Manchester & Merseyside, were not allowed such a vote? What kind of of "democratic deficit" was that then?? New Labour's London favouritism!!
And while New Labour may have succeeded with such referendums back in those early days of 1998, there's virtually no chance anymore. So London won again - thanks to Hazel and her "pro South" party!!
Mark, don't you know? London is a different country.
is HB made up of leftovers after Anne Robinson's plastic surgeries? just a thought.....
So Hazel (get my photo in the paper now) Blears wants to be the Mayor of Manchester does she? Now why am I not surprised, this woman will do anything for publicity.
If Blears is backing it then it's probably not a good idea. If it is to go ahead I hope they give us the chance of a referendum like they did in Bury.
Well they're doing it now so stop moaning!
nellie99, how did you get that one through. I have to agree though.
Last week I was discussing the elected mayor decision with a friend. We both agreed that if we weren't sure, the best course of action was to look who was for it and who was against it. We voted against it - thus proving our theory correct!
In Greater Manchester, we need a Mayor for all of the 10 districts. Collectively their are a number of quangos - Police, Fire, Ambulance, Waste, Airport, Transport, NHS SHA as well as tourism and god knows what else operating across the 10 Councils.
An elected Mayor for Greater Manchester could have a similar role to the London Mayor & look at the 'bigger picture' for the region. Individual Council's can get on with managing their own business then and we end up with someone who ultimately we can vote in/out for dealing with the big stuff.
All this will do is make another tier of corrupt officials. If the ones at the top get away with it all why shouldn't they, if they are working with a bunch of thieves they will turn into a bunch of thieves. Blears should get her own party in order before encouraging more leeches on to us.
Rammylad,
The reason nobody promoted it heavily is that nobody really wanted to change the electoral system because of one greasy man with a grudge. It was on the website and it was in the Prestwich Advertiser every week.
Only 40% of 18% of the borough wanted a mayor. If there was any thirst for this idea more people would have turned out.
So what is the the "listening" Labour Party doing?
1. Trying to encourage mayoral elections becuase they have lost control all but a handful of councils
2. Making it easier for people with a grudge to waste £125,000 of taxpayers money trying to unseat the council but lowering the threshold to 2%
3. Not content with corrupting the electoral system with rigged postal ballots we are now introducing internet polls. The same polls that get discredited every time people don't vote Labour
4. They want to introduce "hard questions" for Councils becuase they have lost control and now want their bitter twisted members to delay the process of democracy with Grandstanding and fillybustering.
They are stealing our liberty. They are changing the rules of democracy t keep them in power.They are telling us what to eat. When and where to smoke and drink.
How long before Labour burn down parliament and cancel elections altogether?