Residents asked to comment on council governance

Residents are being asked to comment on government proposals for how councils - including the Royal Borough - are run.

This stems from new legislation* that says councils must operate in one of two ways:
• either with a council leader (elected by the council) and a cabinet - similar to the system in the Royal Borough already
• or with a mayor elected by local people - similar to the system in London and other towns and cities such as Watford, Middlesbrough and Mansfield.

At a meeting on Tuesday 22 June councillors voted for the leader and cabinet model as their preferred option, signalling the start of a public consultation to find out if local people agree.

The view was that a leader elected by the council itself would mean he or she would have majority support to take forward the council's work and decision-making, supported by a cabinet of councillors that he/she considers best able to lead in their respective services or areas of responsibility.

Councillors felt that having a directly elected mayor would be a less suitable option for a 'complex and diverse district' like the Royal Borough where the current system is better able to incorporate decision-makers representing all parts of its disjointed geographic local authority area.

The council also felt the elected mayor option put excessive power in the hands of one person and, if he/she failed to measure up to the expectations of local people, they could not be removed during their four-year term of office. On the other hand the leader could be removed by a no-confidence vote taken by the council.

The system of a leader and cabinet has operated in the borough since May 2002 and the proposed option differs only slightly in that the leader would be elected for four years instead of one.

Ian Trenholm, chief executive of the Royal Borough, added: "The leader and cabinet model has been tried and tested in the borough for the past eight years and councillors have thrown their weight behind a system that very obviously works.

"In line with the new legislation we have now launched a consultation which gives local people the opportunity to let us know if they agree with the council's preferred option - or not."

Further information is available at www.rbwm.gov.uk (link from home page) and residents can also visit the website to take part in the consultation online. Paper versions of the consultation forms are available in the Town Hall, Maidenhead, and York House, Sheet Street, Windsor. Residents can also take part in the consultation by emailing legal@rbwm.gov.uk or by writing to Head of Legal, Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead, St Ives Road, Maidenhead SL6 1RF. The closing date is Wednesday 15 September 2010.

Responses will be considered by the council on Tuesday 28 September and the final decision taken on 7 December. The new model is due to be introduced after the local government elections in May next year.

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