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Blears calls for elected mayors

05/03/2008

Salford MP and cabinet member Hazel Blears has said that the ten boroughs of Greater Manchester should have elected mayors.

The local government and communities secretary believes figureheads will make local government more accountable to the public and raise the profile of each district, reports the Financial Times.

Residents in Bury will vote later in the year on whether they want to have a directly-elected mayor after a petition was submitted to the council.

"We would like local authorities to really take a fresh look at this and see [if it is] something they want to do," Ms Blears told the newspaper.

"I am increasingly convinced that this issue of visibility is really important and people need to know who can make things happen."

Any borough in Greater Manchester can hold a referendum on having an elected mayor by submitting a petition that has the signatures of five per cent of the local population.

The idea of having elected mayors in all cities, boroughs and towns was enshrined in the Local Government Act of 2000.