There was a Beatles theme to the line of questioning posed by Councillor Deirdre Alden over Sir Albert Bore’s two jobs.

She questioned whether Sir Albert could fulfil his five days a week at the council and three days a week at chairing the Queen Elizabeth Hospital.

“We all remember the hit Eight Days A Week, but we don’t have to live it,” she said before adding that he must endure a Hard Days Night after running both the city council and the University Hospital Trust.

The two jobs, among the highest profile in Birmingham’s public sector, pay a combined total of £110,000 a year.

Sir Albert has been robust in his claim that he can handle both jobs – pointing out that a good trade union negotiates for a full time role of 37 hours a week.

“My attendance and hours at Birmingham City Council are far in excess of that and my attendance at the hospital trust is more than the requirement,” he explained.

It was also muttered by his partner Victoria Quinn that he puts in enough hours and work for ten jobs.

But the Tories are not the only ones concerned at the two jobs as Sir Albert has also facing calls from some in his own Labour group to stand down from one of the roles.

They are not only worried about the time issue but the possibility of a conflict of interest.

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The council’s first ever public question time began brightly with resident Lesley Adams enquiring about the location of a funfair in Cannon Hill Park.

But there then followed a couple of attacks on the Tory-Lib Dems which were helpful to the new Labour council leadership.

They may be people genuinely upset with actions of the previous council and hopeful of a change of tack, but opposition councillors were quick to suggest that the questions were partisan and planted.

Even if there is a whiff of that it will not help the new system bed in.

I suggested last month that the vetting process must guard against public questions coming from would-be candidates and party activists otherwise it becomes a training ground for politicians.

And it would be interesting to see what questions were rejected?