Labour lets Liam Fogarty argue for an elected Mayor on its website
When Liverpool Labour set up its new website a few months ago it remained to be seen how much the party would tolerate differing views.
The Speaker's Corner section was intended to be a place for sensible discussions.
So it is to the party's credit that it has given the space over to Liam Fogarty, who campaigns for a Mayor for Liverpool.
Fogarty sets out a very strong argument for a mayor, you can read the full piece HERE.
Here are few excerpts:
In May, Liverpool people will be choosing local councillors. But they'll be stuck with a system of local politics that keeps letting Liverpool down.
Forget the "Most Improved Council" title, concocted by the council press office.
Liverpool's capacity to mess things up - whether it involves trams, stadiums, regeneration projects or just gritting the roads - is undiminished...
Sceptical Labour supporters should look at what Mayors like Jules Pipe (Hackney) and Steve Bullock (Lewisham) have been able to achieve: better services , greater engagement with the public and real strategic leadership.
Liverpool's first Elected Mayor will be a national political figure, subject to intense scrutiny by the media, councillors, auditors and - most importantly - local voters. The Mayor would stand or fall by their record, and be answerable to the people of Liverpool through the ballot box.
Joe Anderson and others support the idea of a directly-elected Mayor for Merseyside or "Greater Liverpool." They see the merits of having a visible, accountable figure to co-ordinate key services and set out a vision for the future. Quite right, too. It's time we applied these same principles to a council which actually exists - Liverpool City Council. How about it, Joe?
Fogarty even sneaks in this line: Simply turfing out one lot of councillors and replacing them with another isn't enough.
So well done to Labour for allowing someone to express a view not held by the party. I don't think letting Fogarty rip into the current political system represents a shift in Liverpool Labour's view on elected mayors, but it's good to see Labour really starting to make use of their well designed website.
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David Bartlett
City editor of the Post and Echo covering politics, regeneration, and urban affairs.
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Are we surprised that it took Liam Fogarty so much time to pin his colours to the Labour mast. It is commonly known in the media world that Liam has always been a Labour sympathiser.
Isn't it interesting how Liam continually repeats the rhetoric of the few schemes that didnt happen, attempting to distance Labour from them, whilst never mentioning the massive investment and regeneration that has taken place in Liverpool, through EU grant (Liverpool City Council acted as accountable body)or private sector investment.
Now for the record lets remember the schemes he highlights and why they didnt happen, of course if my description is incorrect, Labour Liam can check the facts.
1. Merseytram - this was a City Region scheme, to be funded in the main by the LABOUR Government; the reason it didnt and hasnt been progressed is because the LABOUR Government withdrew the funding (ã170m) from this scheme. Incidentally there were other tram schemes that were confined to the annuls of history at the same time.
2. Stadiums - dont know what Labour Liam means, the only stadium (sorry Arena) the City Council had sole responsibility for, has been delivered, and has been talked about as a massive success, despite the failure of Everton FC's plans for Kings Dock. Liverpool FC are failing to deliver, not the City Council or the Leader, the Stanley Park redevelopment has been completed for months whilst LFC pontificate - has Liam not seen the fabulous redevelopment.
The other schemes he mentioned were private sector led, is it the responsibility of the Council or any council to deliver schemes on behalf of the private sector - maybe Labour Liam needs to understand who's responsible for what?
I look forward to him finally submitting nomination papers to be a Labour candidate in the local elections, and if he is ever elected he will then understand the difference between mouthing off and delivering.