Useful Resources
The following documents and websites provide useful background material on the debate.
Information from Government departments
- Department for Communities and Local Government
- Localism Act
- Consultation: What can a mayor do for your city?
- Dates Set for Mayoral Referenda
- Cities Deal
Houses of Parliament
Institute for Government
The Institute for Government is looking at how the mayoral model can be made to work effectively and whether the government’s proposed model will achieve the intended aim of decentralising power and strengthening accountability at the local level. Initially, it is focusing on three questions for mayoral governance:
- What lessons can we learn from existing mayoral authorities?
- How can the current mayoral model be improved?
- What role can elected mayors play in local economic growth?
Centre for Cities
The Centre for Cities has undertaken a range of research into directly elected mayors, including its joint report with the Institue for Government: Big shot or long shot? How elected mayors can help drive economic growth in England's cities
They have also long made the case for Metro Mayors, covering city regions rather than single metropolitan councils.
The Centre for Cities have produced a range of reports and documents relating to Mayors and City Leadership including devolution of further powers to the Mayor of London.
A Mayor for Greater Manchester
Extension of the Mayor of London's Powers
The Mayor of London's Proposals for Devolution
The Million Vote Mandate
City Leadership: Web Annex 4
Torino City Report
Siôn Simon, the former MP and Government minister who is running for the Labour nomination in Birmingham, points to the Torino City Report and the model behind it as one example of how an industrial city has reinvented itself through a new approach to governance.
The New Local Government Network
The New Local Government Network brings together key opinion formers eager to discuss new ideas across the local government sector, NLGN an independent think tank committed to promoting the decentralisation of power, public service reform, enhancing local governance and empowering communities.
It was founded in 1996 by a group of senior local government figures whose aim was to make local government more relevant and credible to local people. It campaigns for a more devolved constitutional settlement in the UK, to drive forward the localism agenda and press for further decentralisation of power from Whitehall. The Network believes that devolved decision-making leads to more effective, efficient and responsive public services. Local areas face different challenges, and require different approaches to tackling them. We believe the closer the decision-making is to those affected, the better the outcome.
The Network has established a Mayoral Forum to provide practical support to the eleven directly elected Mayors already in place in England.