On behalf of Liverpool’s Liberal Democrat Group, I have welcomed the decision of RESET to change the wording of their citywide petition to include a straight run off between the two most different forms of governance.
The Mayoral model is the most extreme form of centralised power and control which holds power in a tight grip. This system is remarkably similar to the Cabinet/Leader system in that the voters put the power into the hands of one person. As we have seen in the era of Joe Anderson that concentration of power led to lick spittle subservience from many Labour members either because they were scared of that power or gave them rewards for financial enhancement for following obedience.
The committee system is the most decentralised way forward which gives power back to all councillors and their constituents. This removes many of the barriers by which a controlling party can hide decisions away from other councillors, the press, and the public. This is the option that the Liberal Democrats will move at the Council meeting next week.
Perhaps the most outrageous of Labour claims is that the Government Office have told them that they would not accept the Committee system as being fit for purpose given Liverpool’s problems. In my best Victor Meldrew voice I say, “I don’t believe it!”
The Government would need to alter the terms of the 2002 Local Government Act, as amended by the 2011 Localism Act, to intervene in this particular decision. The imposition of Commissioners has no relevance to the decisions on governance which will be taken either by the Council or by referendum. The directions given to the Council and Commissioners by the Secretary of State make no reference to this matter.”
Liberal Democrat concerns that the Council would run a poor consultation were raised at the time that the Council decided not to proceed with the referendum that the Mayor had promised. We told the council that what was proposed would not work but only the Liberal Democrats voted for our amendment to strengthen the running and oversight of the process. Labour, the Community Independents, so-called Liberals and Greens were complicit in allowing the consultation to happen in a way that almost guaranteed a low turnout.
Uniquely the Liberal Democrats actually campaigned on the governance issue putting out 60,000 newspapers and including the issue in local newsletters as well as social media and emails. The Greens, the Community Independents, the so-called Liberals and Labour did absolutely nothing to engage people on the issues. That can be seen in the fact that the highest returns came from Liberal Democrat wards.
If Labour intends to totally ignore their own consultation, we will fight to make the Leader and the Cabinet as accountable to all councillors and to the people of Liverpool as possible with enhanced scrutiny of Cabinet decisions.
We will accompany this with proposals for a root and branch change in the ways that we work by moving more power to councillors and their communities by working on new community led governance models based on the small new wards.
This entire process shows that Labour holds the opinions of the people of Liverpool in absolute contempt. Just like their Tory mates in London they believe that they know best, and that governing is all about their perks and privileges. If they had a Chequers, they would have to be prised out of it just as Johnson has been.
It is time for a change. Just as Messrs Yip and Fogarty are saying Liverpool needs resetting. Now we need a conversation with the people of Liverpool not just about governance of the council but the very direction that the City will go in for the coming decades. This is a consultation that the Liverpool Liberal Democrats intend to have with our citizens and unlike Labour we will listen to what they say.
But what does Richard Kemp think? 