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found 9 stories.
News
Bloxidge Tallygraph 18 Jan 11
Black Country characters, towns and trades will be the hot topics of the evening when popular historian, author and columnist Professor Carl Chinn MBE takes to the stage in Leamore.
The Mayor of Walsall, Councillor Gary Clarke, is hosting ‘An Evening with Carl Chinn’ on Monday 7 February, to raise funds for Walsall Hospice and disadvantaged borough children…
Comment
Jonathan Walker B'ham Post 10 Dec 10
There is still no sign of the Localism Bill, the Government legislation that will create mayors in big cities such as Birmingham. Although there was no formal timetable for the bill’s introduction, it was widely expected more than a fortnight ago.
But it failed to appear – and the official explanation was that there hadn’t been any space in the Parliamentary timetable for it.
This is hard to understand, as the publication of a bill, otherwise known as the first reading, takes a couple of minutes at most…
News PR
Walsall Council 29 Nov 10
From charity work bringing in thousands of pounds in donations to a clean-up campaign to improve the lives of residents – Walsall’s seventh annual Mayor’s Civic Awards put the focus on all those who help make a difference in their communities.
The awards ceremony, held last night (Friday 26 November) at Banks’s Stadium, gave the borough’s unsung heroes their turn in the limelight and revealed the fantastic efforts being made by so many people.
The awards are known affectionately as the Doras – after nursing heroine Sister Dora who worked tirelessly for Walsall people – and nominations fell into eight categories, sponsored by local companies…
News
CommonPeople 9 Nov 10
Youngsters from Pelsall Village School, in Old Town Lane, Walsall, sang four songs for the Mayor of Walsall, councillor Gary Clarke, at The Council House in the town on Friday.
The event had been organised by the Deputy Mayor of Walsall, Councillor Garry Perry, who is also a governor at the school…
News
The YamYam 23 Dec 09
Proposals to change the current leader and cabinet system of governing Walsall were safely buried at an extra-ordinary meeting of full council on Monday night.
The Local Government Public Involvement in Health Act 2007 places a duty on councils to undertake a consultation to gauge support for an elected mayor. Councillors were told that only 100 people responded to the consultation of which only 24 were in favour of replacing the present leadership system.
Across the region, Dudley, Sandwell and Wolverhampton held similar consultations on elected mayors and a low response rate mirrored that in Walsall. In all, only 228 expressed a view out the 1 million people in the four boroughs. Supporters of the current cabinet system claim that the low response is an indication of overwhelming support for the existing political hierarchy. Critics, however, claim that the consultations were not adequately publicised and so the vast majority of the population were not aware of the proposal.
In Walsall, a working group made up of the three main party leaders met in September 2007 to decide the form of the consultation. They recommended that a page be created on the council website and that an advert should be placed in the Express & Star. They also suggested that a paper copy of the proposals be distributed to all councillors and that copies should be available at the Civic Centre for public inspection. An advert appeared in the Express & Star on 25 September 2007.
The four week consultation period ended on 25 October this year and a second advert appeared in the Express & Star on 27 November. It read:
NOTICE OF PROPOSAL
LOCAL GOVERNMENT ACT 2007
Pursuant to Section 64 Local Government and Public Involvement in Health Act 2007 (the Act) Walsall Council will consider a proposal for a new form of executive at a meeting of the Council on 21 December 2009.The Act permits two forms of executive, the proposal to Council is that the leader and cabinet executive (England) form is adopted. This model delegates executive decision making to the leader who may appoint between 2 and 9 councillors to the cabinet.
If you would like further information on the proposal a document is available on our website www.walsall.gov.uk or contact Mr. J. Garner, Constitutional Services Manager 01922 653500, garnerj@walsall.gov.uk or it can be collected from our principle office, The Civic Centre, Darwa ll Street, Walsall between the following hours
Monday and Tuesday 8.45 a.m. – 5.15 pm
Wednesday 9.30 a.m. – 5.15 pm
Thursday 8.45 a.m. – 5.15 pm
Friday 8.45 a.m. – 4.45 pm
Dated this 27th November 2009
Speaking after the meeting on Monday night, council leader Mike Bird said: “There were 76 in favour of leader and cabinet and 24 for an elected mayor. However, I have agreed that the cabinet portfolio holders and scrutiny panel chairmen will report to full council twice a year to try and engage people more.”
All the portfolio holders and all but one scrutiny panel chairmen belong to the same political group as Councillor Bird.
News
The YamYam 29 Sep 09
The people of Walsall are for the first time being given an opportunity to influence the future governance of the borough. Council chiefs are asking for the views of residents on a straight choice between the existing Leader and Cabinet system or for a directly elected independent mayor. The current administration seems worried at what the latter proposal might produce. In one local authority, the electorate voted for a man dressed in a monkey suit.
Under the Local Government and Public Involvements in Health Act 2007, local authorities need to choose between the two options and are required to undertake a survey of public opinion. If 5% of responses indicate a desire for an elected mayor, then a referendum on the proposal involving all Walsall voters must take place.
The track record of elected mayors is, at best, patchy. Stoke-on-Trent adopted the mayoral system following a narrow yes vote in a referendum in 2002. Dissatisfaction with what was seen as an erosion of local democracy led to an unprecedented second referendum in October 2008 when the electorate voted to return to the Leader and Cabinet model with a similar narrow majority. Turn out in the first referendum was a disappointing 27% and in the second, only 19%.
In June of this year, Doncaster voters elected Peter Davies from the hard right English Democrats as mayor. Running a campaign based on English devolution and anti-political correctness, his first announcements involved cutting funding to Council translation services to immigrants and Doncaster Gay Pride. He also wishes to reduce the number of local Councillors by two thirds and withdraw protection for refugees.
In Hartlepool, the former constituency of Peter Mandelson, the town`s football club mascot was elected mayor in 2002. Stuart Drummond campaigned wearing a monkey suit under the alter ego “H`Angus the Monkey”, a reference to the alleged hanging of a monkey during the Nepoleonic wars. The unfortunate ape, the only survivor of a French shipwreck, was lynched by the townspeople as they assumed he was a spy. Mr Drummond continues to wear the monkey suit and has twice been ejected from Hartlepool away games for simulating sexual acts upon unsuspecting female stewards. “H`Angus the Monkey” was re-elected as mayor in 2005. It is not known if H`Angus was present at the 3-0 drubbing of Walsall on Saturday.
In London, voters elected Boris Johnston.
Now, Walsall has the chance to decide between the existing system of one party rule or the election of a single individual to run the town. In accordance with the Local Government and Public Involvements in Health Act 2007, no other options are available. Should a referendum be necessary, Walsall Council are at pains to point out that such a process will cost £160,000.
The survey is available at the link below or by telephone on 01922 653500 and the closing date for responses is October 25th.
News
Walsall Council 19 May 09
Walsall’s new Mayor, Councillor John O’Hare was officially sworn into the First Citizen role at a Mayor-making ceremony on Monday night. Councillor O’Hare, aged 64, stepped down as Walsall Council leader in order to take up the role and had been council leader for two years…
Walsall Advertiser 14 May Bird sounds changes at town hall
News
Walsall Council 17 Apr 09
The Mayor of Walsall will carry out the centuries-old custom of Walking the Fair on Friday 24 April, a tradition which goes back at least as far as 1662…
News
Walsall Council, 30 Mar 09 30 Mar 09
A charity concert in aid of the Mayor of Walsall’s chosen causes should strike a chord with fundraisers with Pelsall Ladies Choir and St Cecilia Singers performing at St Michael’s Church in Pelsall on Friday…