16 September 2011
St Helens Green Party is urging a borough-wide referendum on proposals to impose an all-powerful Liverpool ‘City Region’ mayor upon the tow
n.
The government has drawn up a bill proposing the introduction of London-style city mayors nationwide, but there have been suggestions that Liverpool hopes to have its remit extended to the so-called city region, which includes St Helens.
Local councillors appear unanimous in their opposition, but St Helens Green Party believes such opposition lacks credibility and is doomed to failure without public support.
St Helens Green Party spokesman Francis Williams says:
“The opposition to yet another layer of bureaucracy appears timely and welcome, but in reality it’s purely tactical, wholly tokenistic and lacking credibility.
“For Labour, this isn’t about standing up for St Helens – it’s about self-preservation. The same politicians now claiming to be aghast at the mayoral proposals have been actively involved in establishing Liverpool City Region government without the slightest knowledge of, let alone a democratic mandate from, the vast majority of people in St Helens.
“The issue of a Liverpool City Region mayor for St Helens should be put before the St Helens borough electorate in a referendum. Recent history shows that only they, not politicians, can really stand up for St Helens.”
St Helens Green Party believes that the notion of local authorities, businesses and others working together to tackle key challenges such as economic development and climate change makes perfect sense. But this has to be transparent and democratic, enabling ordinary people to take an active and informed part in the decision-making processes which affect their lives, with real decisions devolved to the most local level possible.
St Helens Green Party RSS Feed