The poll on the NewburyToday front pages asks the question: Is the idea of a town mayor an outdated concept?

60% of respondents have so far said yes.

As one of the Trumpton-generation I definitely see the institution as quaint and anachronistic, but that doesn't necessarily mean I'd like it to end. Quite the opposite really, I have quite some affection and nostalgia for Trumpton (though in truth I would much prefer to have Bagpuss chair the town council). It's likely that a decline in local distinctiveness is a symptom rather than a cause of the general erosion in community values, but I believe that keeping that colour and pageant going is a way of rekindling that sense of place and inclusion that's been lost. So yes, in a Trumptonesque post-modern ironic kind of way I'd like to see a town mayor, just as I'd like to see a King and Queen of the May, Jack o'the Green, hobby horses, strip the willow, carnival processions, battle re-enactment, crafty craft, morris dancing, and folk singing.

But as a functionary of the state apparatus? Hardly. If the round table want to dress up in tri-corn hats then good for them (I guess), but what local government needs is to be small, efficient, and inclusive, and a town mayor as chair of the town council is the exact opposite of that - arrogant, exclusive, and wasteful. Of course, getting rid of the mayor wouldn't in itself make the town council any less inept or sensitive, but if there ever comes a day when the town council eschews its exclusivity and waste, then you'll know it's here when they drop the mayor.

So yes, get rid of the mayor, and if the town council can't reform their ways, get rid of the lot of them.

As I see it, the problem with a Mayor, is it is exclusively awarded. A baton that is passed around the political elite. I would imagine the vast majority of Newbury doesn't know who the mayor is.

We might as well go the whole way - but what an awful prospect faces our children. Rule by those who don't think we have a constitution - simply because it isn't all written down and in one place. Even if simply having a Mayor reminds some of the freedoms we have lost, its probably worth the cash.

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oh look it's Simon Kirby

You're as funny as AIDS.

it's ok for Simon to do the same thing then???

What freedoms have we lost?

Simon wasn't being personal. You bring shame to the Tories.

Simon did the pics of swift-hook and allen and you say that wasn't personal. how do you work that out.

No reply Andy???

You think the mayor is our last bastion of freedom? How do you reckon that? The town council do nothing to engage and empower, and their arrogance and insecurity actually erode our societal values, and the mayor is the embodyment of that.

What a surprise, your having a go at the council again. God you are so boring

can the admin tell us How many have voted on this???

We no longer have any real say locally on what or how services are provided. Most, certainly the big spending ones are strictly governed by mandate - soup to nuts. Lets not pretend for instance that the LEA have any say whatsoever in how our schools operate. Another example, in judicial terms, we have no real say in how the Police operate, or how the local magistrates operate. Prior to the Heath reforms in the 1970's we had far more say - since then its been down hill all the way. Very few took any interest, or indeed noticed, the damage the Blair government did to our constitution. I must admit - seeing this decline makes me very sad as well as fearful for the future. Perhaps one day someone will again understand what those robes actually mean.

Is Panda a tory? It wouldn't suprise me, he or she certainly seems nasty enough.

Well perhaps you should actually reply in the right thread and save the confusion?


You are right. Simon's post was a witty as yours.

In the case you replied to, I think Simon Kirby makes a valid point.


I'm unsure I can reconcile this with lost freedoms and the mayoral role, although it is an interesting passage none the less. I can see pros and cons in having a bit of both: a self determined local authority and a higher authority keeping things in check.