Mayor Marvin Rees, business owners and Suzanne Audrey of Bristol Walking Alliance – photo by Ellie Pipe (2)
But, after resigning as a Labour councillor and cabinet member for housing in 2020, Paul Smith indicated “there is a real problem at the moment” and suggested, “we need to look at how those backbench councillors and opposition councillors can have more of a say”.
What is the point in having 70 elected councillors, he asked, if almost all decisions are made by an elected Mayor and a small number of councillors in the cabinet?
Despondency about the role of backbench and opposition councillors was evident in a recent speech at full council by Labour backbencher, Mike Davies: “There has been such a disparity between my hopes before I got elected and the reality of being a councillor under the mayoral system – it’s been a demoralising experience, and I know that’s true not just for me but for many others.”