Sheffield Star to host Elected Mayor debate – Monday 29th April
Posted: April 29, 2012 Filed under: Events | Tags: debates, elected mayors, sheffield city council 1 Comment »Local Sheffield paper The Star is hosting a debate on elected mayors on Monday evening to allow members of the public to question the main opponents and supporters of having an elected Mayor of Sheffield.
IT’S one of the biggest decisions Sheffield residents will have to make – and will have a huge impact on the way the city is run.
Now The Star is giving you the chance to join a Question Time-style debate about whether the city should have an elected mayor.
The event is being held on Monday, from 6.30pm, at Sheffield Hallam University’s the Cantor Lecture Theatre, in the Cantor Building, Arundel Street. Panellists are to include council leader Julie Dore, who is opposed to elected mayors, and Kevin Meagher, chairman of the Mayor4Sheffield campaign.
Voters will asked at a referendum on Thursday to make the choice between keeping the current system where they elect councillors who then choose a leader and cabinet members, or to have a directly-elected mayor to run the council.
Read the full post for further information and to apply to be in the audience.
Link: Electoral Reform Society hits out at democracy deserts in the UK
Posted: April 27, 2012 Filed under: Link | Tags: council elections, electoral reform, ers, local democracy, wales Leave a comment »Over at the Electoral Reform Society blog, Stephen Brooks (Director ERS Wales) attacks the undemocratic nature of our local elections, which allow people to be elected uncontested and for parties to win all the seats in some areas with only a minority share of the vote.
Next week voters across 21 of Wales’ 22 unitary authorities will head to the polls to decide the political make-up of their local councils. Voters will express a view on where they want to see their council head for the next five years. The direction of travel on a range of critical issues like council tax, social services, schools, transport and economic development will all be set.
But for nearly 140,000 the opportunity to express a view has been stolen from them by an unfair and outdated electoral system. For them, next Thursday won’t be Election Day.
Across Wales, 95 individuals have already been elected unopposed. The simple task of submitting nomination forms was all it took. No need especially to phone canvass, knock a single door, or attend a hustings. In one ward, no one submitted nomination forms. Residents there will go unrepresented until a by-election is organised.
Electoral Reform Society Wales research shows that across the country, 12 of the 21 councils up for election contain uncontested seats. The worst, Powys is home to an estimated 32,132 residents denied a vote. Gwynedd has approximately 22,861 residents robbed a voice; and in Pembrokeshire its 20,038.
This is not just a problem for rural Wales. Voting won’t interrupt the daily routine of 7,085 residents in Bridgend county borough next Thursday. Nor the 7,524 taxpayers who live in local government minister Carl Sargeant’s own constituency.
Is this a sign of a declining interest in politics? A sign that fewer and fewer people are interested in standing? Or is it an illustration of how our ‘winner takes it all’ First Past The Post system is crowding out competition, particularly in single-member wards?
Read the full post: 140,000 reasons for reform.
Sheffield for Democracy submission to government consultation on lobbying
Posted: April 23, 2012 Filed under: Consultation, Report Leave a comment »On 12 April 2012, we held a public meeting in Sheffield on “Open up Lobbying” which 60 people attended, to discuss and comment on the lobbying proposals. Speakers were Tamasin Cave of Spinwatch, Councillor Joe Otten, and Paul Blomfield MP. Based on that debate and other discussions between our supporters Sheffield for Democracy made a submission to the consultation on proposals for a statutory register of lobbyists, which closed last Friday.
Our report touches upon various issues related to lobbying in, including this bit regarding current political culture:
The unsatisfactory nature of the current situation, on access to influence and power, is well known and acknowledged, including by the Prime Minister, famously quoted as saying: “It is the next big scandal waiting to happen.” All three main political parties have been embarrassed at some point in the last three years by the action of some of their MPs and Lords.
The culture of lack of trust in our politicians encourages a belief that sleaze is inevitable, that ordinary voters have little if any influence, so that that voting cannot make a difference, with fewer people then bothering to vote, especially amongst those who are most needy and vulnerable. This is what politicians are hearing on the doorstep. One worry is about the disengagement of part of the population; another is the demand for extreme forms of direct democracy.
Not that all our politicians are tainted by poor practices; the majority are not, but suffer the same public disapproval which is damaging. Our media often assume this.
You can read more by downloading our Consultation Submission here (PDF, 376KB).
“Open Up Lobbying” Sheffield Public Meeting – A Summary
Posted: April 22, 2012 Filed under: Events, Report 1 Comment »This post summarises the discussions at our “Open up Lobbying” public meeting that was held on Thursday 12th April 2012.
60 people attended a public meeting in Sheffield to discuss the lobbying proposals and to comment on them. Speakers were Tamasin Cave of Spinwatch, Councillor Joe Otten, and MP Paul Blomfield.
Political Culture
The unsatisfactory nature of the current situation, on access to influence and power, was discussed, with all three political parties embarrassed at some point in the last three years by the action of some of their MPs and Lords. The culture of lack of trust in our politicians leads to a cynicism which is seen as very destructive of our democracy: disengagement follows and a belief that sleaze is inevitable. This can lead to the belief that voting cannot make a difference, with fewer people then bothering to vote, especially amongst those who are most needy and vulnerable. This is what politicians are hearing on the doorstep; the worry is about the disenfranchisement of part of the population, which current proposals on voter registration, making it more a consumer choice than a duty of citizenship, will also affect.
One participant likened the system to the Mafia, which is known to ensure political cover for its activities through a high degree of organisation, and bribery and threats. However, whilst the strategy of political influence is similar, no one was suggesting those extremes of criminal activity were common in UK.
Access to influence
A recurring theme during our meeting was the issue of access to influence for ordinary voters. This included how issues were discussed, with a strong plea for clarity of expression on this, so that ordinary people who were not experts could understand the arguments. Too often, those of us who have worked on an issue use jargon or short-hand phrases, or assume a level of understanding that is not there. Also, access for those who do not have internet access needs to be thought through.
Transparency is important but, how can we ensure equality of access?
Steering Group Meeting – Sunday 22 April
Posted: April 16, 2012 Filed under: Meetings Leave a comment »- our recent public meeting on Lobbying and our submission to the consultation process;
- the debate on elected mayors;
- progress on our plans for an event on proposal for local government reform.
Links: NO to Mayors
Posted: April 3, 2012 Filed under: Link | Tags: elected mayors, local democracy, referendums, sheffield city council 1 Comment »As part of our coverage of the Mayoral Referendums across the country (especially Sheffield) I’m posting links to each of the local NO to Mayors campaigns (see here for YES to Mayors links). There isn’t a website for the Sheffield No campaign that I am aware of but hopefully Sheffield readers might find the information on the other sites useful even if it they may not be entirely relevant to Sheffield.
- National sites:No links available
- Birmingham:No links available
- Bradford: No links available
- Bristol: http://www.bristolsaysno.org/
- Coventry:No links available
- Leeds: http://www.noleedsmayor.net/
- Manchester: http://www.unisonmanchester.org/manchester-news/vote-no-to-an-elected-mayor
- Newcastle: http://www.nonewcastlemayor.org.uk/
- Nottingham: No links available
- Sheffield: No links available
- Wakefield: No links available
If you know about any other “No to Mayors” websites (especially Sheffield ones!) please get in touch with us via the comments section or email info@sheffieldfordemocracy.org.uk.
Links: YES to Mayors
Posted: April 3, 2012 Filed under: Link | Tags: elected mayors, local democracy, referendums, sheffield city council 2 Comments »
Yes to Mayors campaign logo
As part of our coverage of the Mayoral Referendums across the country (especially Sheffield) I’m posting links to each of the local YES to Mayors campaigns (see here for NO to Mayors links). There isn’t a website for the Sheffield Yes campaign that I am aware of but hopefully Sheffield readers might find the information on the other sites useful even if it they may not be entirely relevant to Sheffield.
- National sites: http://yes2mayors.com/
- Birmingham: http://yestobirminghammayor.com/
- Bradford: No links available
- Bristol: http://bristolmayor.org/
- Coventry: http://covyes.co.uk/
- Leeds: No links available
- Manchester: No links available
- Newcastle: http://www.newcastlemayor.org.uk/
- Nottingham: No links available
- Sheffield: No links available
- Wakefield: No links available
If you know about any other “Yes to Mayors” websites (especially Sheffield ones!) please get in touch with us via the comments section or email info@sheffieldfordemocracy.org.uk.
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