Labour reject call for Boris Johnson-style elected mayor for city

The proposals for a council shake up the city which would also have seen the number of councillors slashed, have been rejected.

A Labour majority on Southampton City Council saw plans to cut 16 councillors and create a post for a directly-elected mayor defeated.

The move has come under fire from Tories, who voted for the changes, and had called on them to back the reduction at a time when the council is losing hundreds of staff each years due to cutbacks and save the cash-strapped authority £500,000 a year.

But Labour said the current numbers represented “good value for money” for residents, and that it would be harder for councillors to work effectively for their residents if there were less of them.

Proposals to cut councillor numbers from 48 to 32, create a directly-elected mayor to replace the current leader and cabinet model, and change the frequency of elections from three of every four years to once every four years, went out to consultation earlier this year.

More than 1,400 people responded, with 67 per cent saying they wanted to reduce the council’s size, 48 per cent wanting a directly-elected mayor and 55 per cent in favour of changing elections.

At a full meeting of the council Labour councillor Chris Hammond, below, compared Southampton, which has 48 councillors and more than 170,000 electors, to Winchester, which has 57 city councillors and seven county councillors for 92,000 residents.

His colleague Darren Paffey said councillors at the Southampton were “cheap” and that the proposals would “actively disenfranchise” residents.

Council leader Simon Letts, below, said there was concern about the workload of councillors if there were only 32 members of the council, saying extra technology such as email had increased councillors’ workloads at a time when the city’s population is rising.

He added: “At this time it is the wrong time to reduce members.”

The Conservatives had called on them to reduce councillor numbers and change the electoral cycle, saying the changes could save the council up to £500,000 a year.

The council recently announced its proposals to meet a £31m budget gap for 2015/16, which could include losing up to 300 jobs, while five city libraries could close after a review into their future was launched.

Group leader Royston Smith, below, said: “£500,000 is a lot of money, that would keep the libraries open.

“You’re asking people at this authority to get their coats and leave the building, but you are not willing to set an example yourselves.”

His colleague John Hannides accused Labour of “putting their interests before those of the city”.

But Labour and the rebel Councillors Against the Cuts voted against the proposals over councillor numbers and elections, outvoting the Conservatives.

None of the parties voted to introduce a mayor.