By Dave Woodhall.
Bob Warman has announced that he wants to stand for the post of elected mayor of Birmingham.
That the position doesn’t exist is neither here nor there – no matter how much opposition, or more likely, apathy, there is to the idea, chances are that it will happen. When Prime Ministers speak out in favour of an idea they tend to happen. The earliest possible time there will be a mayoral election is 2013, by which time Warman will be 66, but age isn’t the only reason why his announcement is a bad idea.
Basically, what do you think when the name Bob Warman is mentioned? A newsreader, and a bit of a smarmy one at that. Owner of a PR company. A man on the verge of normal retirement age who has never, as far as I know, been a political activist and who doesn’t appear to have any of the experience required to run a city of a million inhabitants. The only thing Bob Warman has going for him is a public profile. He’s well-known, and that’s one of the reasons why I remain sceptical of the whole mayoral saga.
Elected mayors seem often to be a case of voting for the best-known rather than the most worthwhile candidate. There’s been Robocop in Middlesbrough, the monkey in Hartlepool and London has returned two of the highest-profile maverick politicians the mainstream parties possess. It’s not a great advertisement for the electoral process.
When/if Birmingham has a mayoral election the candidates will probably be along similar lines. Apart from Warman, those who have declared an interest are former Erdington MP Sion Simon (possibly with a little help from his friends at Labour Party HQ), another former MP, Clare Short, and the city’s premier self-publicist Ray ‘John Bull’ Egan. Others who seem to be keeping a keen eye on proceedings include Ed Doolan (although age and ill-health would seem to indicate the retiring Radio WM presenter would prefer a power behind the throne role), former director of the CBI Lord Digby Jones and Prof. Carl Chinn. The latter is, of course, the one potential candidate the others fear. If the election were a popularity contest he would win hands down. I should declare an interest here – Carl’s an old friend of mine and someone I respect enormously. However, I’m not sure whether his burning passion to project the city is best served via the political arena. Clare Short has already spoken of how difficult the job would be against a background of government cuts. Some of the candidates already mentioned might find themselves unwilling, or unable, to trade personal popularity against the need to make tough decisions. However discredited their calling may be, politicians tend to understand this.
Does Birmingham need an elected mayor? The case is, as yet, unproven. If the time comes when an election is held, should the winning candidate be elected for their personality, or their ability to do the job? That one goes without saying, but I’m willing to bet the first elected mayor of Birmingham will owe more to their popularity than their policies.
While we’re on the subject, one of the main reasons supporters of an elected mayor back the idea is the undeniable fact that this region constantly fails to pull its weight on the national and international stage. This could be remedied a lot quicker, and cheaper, if the various local authorities that make up the West Midlands worked together rather than giving the impression of behaving like members of a family who fell out way back in the mists of time and still refuse to speak to each other despite having forgotten the reason why. That, though, is an argument for another day.
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