Should Bristol retain the elected mayor model?

Bristol has had an elected mayor for ten years, with George Ferguson serving for one term and Marvin Rees in his second and final term of office.

A referendum decided to change our city’s model of governance and a referendum could change it once again.

The Lib Dems are proposing a motion to call for another citywide vote in May 2022 on how Bristol should be governed, with their alternative being a system of committees made up of elected councillors.

So should Bristol retain our elected mayor? Or should we have an alternative?

In the red corner, those for retaining the elected mayor system. And in the blue corner, those against the role of elected mayor who would prefer our city to be governed by a committee system.

AGAINST AN ELECTED MAYOR: Alex Hartley, Lib Dem councillor for Hotwells & Harbourside
“Bristol has suffered through ten years of the mayoral model, and it is time for the people of Bristol to make their voice heard. From the arena to Cumberland Basin, from RPZs to Neighbourhood Partnerships, the mayor has consistently ignored the wishes of Bristolians and councillors, because the mayoral system allows it. This must change. I hope that councillors will vote to put the question back to the public.”

FOR AN ELECTED MAYOR: Jaya Chakrabarti, president of Bristol Chamber of Commerce & Initiative
“The far too regular changes of city leadership in the years which led up to the referendum made it impossible for Bristol to have stability and consistency for long-term thinking and improved decision-making. It also made the case harder for investment to be made in the city whether by national government or private. Bristol Chamber of Commerce & Initiative continues to be supporters of the directly elected mayoral model and want to see this strengthened. And so, at a time when other places are moving to adopt the elected mayoral model and business and employers are having to focus on such issues as the impact of inflation, Brexit, recovering from the pandemic, skills, supply chain shortages and decarbonisation, we consider a referendum is a distraction and urge the councillors to reject the motion in favour of a commitment by all to improve the directly elected mayor model.”

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Read more: ‘Getting rid of the mayor would relegate Bristol to the status of a parish council’

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AGAINST: George Ferguson, former elected mayor of Bristol
“I think it’s absolutely crazy that we now have two mayors that now bicker at each other and are weakening the position of Bristol and the west of England as a result. It would be so much better if we had one strong mayor for the metro region as Manchester and Birmingham do… I strongly believe that we should remove the mayoral position in Bristol – which I wouldn’t have stood for if the metro mayor position had existed – and that we move to a much more democratic cabinet system that hopefully would contain more than one party.”

FOR: Nigel Costley, South West TUC regional secretary
“Our councils should be focusing on social care, fighting to save essential services and jobs from further cuts, dealing with the housing crisis and helping us tackle the climate emergency. Structures in and around Bristol are a mess and this will make things even worse. Each change has been largely driven by party-political interests and the current call for a referendum is no different. Unions have welcomed the mayor’s One City approach in which the big institutions and stakeholders of Bristol work together to respond to the pandemic. Stop messing around with governance arrangements and get on with the job.”

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Read more: ‘Bristol’s mayoral model has failed to deliver on its promises’

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AGAINST: Joe Rayment, former Bath & North East Somerset councillor and Labour candidate for Bishopston & Ashley Down ward
“Those who support the mayoral system say that this is system ‘gets things done’. They’re right that unchecked power is more efficient than scrutiny and accountability, but that’s not a price I’m willing to pay. Good governance is about finding a balance between democracy and efficiency. However, the most likely alternative in a referendum – the committee system – swings the needle too far in the opposite direction… But there is an alternative to both of these, and it’s the most common form of council governance in the country. A ‘leader and cabinet’ system is a scaled-down, but more democratic, version of how the country is run.”

FOR: Sandy Hore-Ruthven, former Green Party mayoral candidate
“Most of us in Bristol would agree we face many challenges – from making sure our city is a more equal and fairer place, to supporting our high streets to recover from the pandemic and I think most would agree that we need to play our part in tackling climate change. Add in rising rents and improving education and the list can become daunting. And the simple fact is that the council cannot tackle these problems alone. We need business, charities, academics and communities to work together. And the way to bring together the city to face these challenges is with leadership that has the mandate of the whole city. In other words, a democratically elected mayor chosen not by the political parties but by the people.”

Main photo: Martin Booth

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