{"id":36608,"date":"2021-05-13T10:39:38","date_gmt":"2021-05-13T09:39:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.shefnews.co.uk\/?p=36607"},"modified":"2021-05-13T10:39:38","modified_gmt":"2021-05-13T09:39:38","slug":"sheffield-referendum-voters-opt-to-change-system-after-david-and-goliath-struggle-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/shefnews.co.uk\/index.php\/2021\/05\/13\/sheffield-referendum-voters-opt-to-change-system-after-david-and-goliath-struggle-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Sheffield referendum: Voters opt to change system after ‘David and Goliath’ struggle"},"content":{"rendered":"

Campaigners have hailed a referendum victory which will change Sheffield City Council to a committee model of decision-making as like winning a \u2018David and Goliath struggle\u2019.<\/span><\/p>\n

A petition formed by It\u2019s Our City triggered the vote<\/a> after collecting signatures of support from more than five per cent of the city\u2019s voters, who then <\/span>backed the move by 89,670 votes to 48,727.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

It means more of the city\u2019s 84 councillors will have a say on important decisions, whereas, currently – under the \u2018leader and cabinet\u2019 model – most decisions are made by a group of 10 cabinet councillors chosen from the majority party by the Council Leader.<\/span><\/p>\n

Anne Barr, co-chair of It\u2019s Our City, said: \u201cWe’re overjoyed with the result. What\u2019s enormously gratifying is that it\u2019s not just a win, it\u2019s an overwhelmingly empathetic win.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201c<\/span>I\u2019d like to stress what a David and Goliath struggle it\u2019s been. However, the result today shows communities together can make powerful changes.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

The council is now in no overall control following Labour\u2019s defeat at the local elections, <\/span>meaning a coalition is to be formed.<\/span><\/p>\n

Simon Duffy, director of the Sheffield-based independent think-tank Centre for Welfare Reform, said: \u201c<\/span>Sheffield has won the double, both with going to no overall control and this referendum result. The city is on the edge of a new chapter.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

According to It\u2019s Our City, <\/span>more than 80 per cent of candidates<\/a> standing in last week’s local election supported the change. However, former Council Leader Bob Johnson in the Labour Party has spoken out against the change on Twitter in the lead-up to the referendum.<\/span><\/p>\n

\n

See also Manchester, Leeds, Newcastle etc etc..in fact every major city in England. Newham and Cheshire East aren\u2019t really comparators are they if we\u2019re all being totally honest..you can\u2019t find a comparable city running ctte system for a good reason..there isn\u2019t one!<\/p>\n

\u2014 robert johnson (@Bob_of_Hills) April 10, 2021<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Speaking of the vote, Henri Murison, Director of the Northern Powerhouse Partnership, said: \u201cA committee system would cripple Sheffield politically and economically, weakening its ability to make strategic, long-term decisions and diluting its capacity to affect real change for local people.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

But Mr Duffy disagreed and said: <\/span>\u201cSheffield must be the groundbreaker for democratic reform in the whole United Kingdom.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThe massive challenge, of course, will be for the councillors to reach out, beyond narrow party interest, and work together to define a new democratic constitution for the city.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

The current system will remain for the next year while there is a gradual move to committees.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"

Credit: Now and Then magazine<\/p><\/div>\n

\"\"

Credit: Now and Then magazine<\/p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The victory was backed by 89,670 votes to 48,727.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":175,"featured_media":36625,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[50],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-36608","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-politics"],"yoast_head":"\nSheffield referendum: Voters opt to change system after 'David and Goliath' struggle - ShefNews<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Their victory was backed by 89,670 votes to 48,727.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/shefnews.co.uk\/index.php\/2021\/05\/13\/sheffield-referendum-voters-opt-to-change-system-after-david-and-goliath-struggle-2\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_GB\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Sheffield referendum: Voters opt to change system after 'David and Goliath' struggle - 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