Birmingham to have an elected mayor by 2012, says Government

Jul 29 2010 by Jonathan Walker, Birmingham Post

Birmingham is to have its own mayor by 2012, the Government has confirmed.

But it is not clear when a referendum on creating a mayor will take place.

Local Government Secretary Eric Pickles set out a detailed timetable for the transformation of regional government, designed to “make localism and the Big Society part of everyday life”.

The measures will be included in a Localism Bill, which ministers expect to become law in November 2011.

The plan states the Bill will “enable the largest 12 cities in England to have Mayors from 2012, subject to confirmatory referenda and full scrutiny by elected councillors”, with elections taking place in May 2012.

However, the Department of Communities and Local Government has refused to explain the precise meaning of “confirmatory referenda”, and a spokesman would only say that details would be announced at a later date.

The Government will begin developing options for the transition to mayors from November 2010, according to the timetable. Other key milestones will include abolishing official inspections of council performance, called the Comprehensive Area Assessment, in October.

In a separate White Paper, the Government also confirmed plans to create directly elected police commissioners.

And it announced it was formally ending the last government’s attempts to force fire brigades, such as the five services in the West Midlands, to merge into giant regional services.