Thread by @Andrewwood17

This tweet is largely wrong and it is why I have real problems with the Leader and Cabinet model campaign and have not backed it
Some tweets challenging each point they make
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https://twitter.com/th_together/status/1376162943071625219

Representative - local people lose their power to directly elect their leader in this model, that is the whole point of it
If you want empowered Cllrs TH Labour would have followed Newham Labour in offering the Committee system as an option
But a reminder that Cllrs are not
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entirely representative
Labour got 46% of the vote in May 2018 but ended up with 42 of 45 Councillors or 93%
Thanks to First Past the Vote, the biggest party wins
+ 42% turnout as well so in reality = only 19% of voters voted Labour
So are Cllrs representative of local people?
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Diverse - the leader is elected for 4 yrs by Cllrs (in reality by the Labour group), leader then pick their own Cabinet
So how diverse the Cabinet team depends on the coalition that leader needs to win in their internal election campaign
Read this
pgweb.uk/forums/forums-…
&
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cratus.co.uk/focus-on-enfie…
What happened in Enfield shows how the internal Labour battle can determine who leads & that the public may have zero involvement as it is all done behind closed doors
A Leader in Cabinet is still a strong leader model & still has a lot of power
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Fair - this has a point, under the Mayoral system the winning candidate can win an overwhelming vote in one part of the Borough while Cllrs are more broadly representative
But that assumes Cllrs are thinking about their ward when picking a leader!
This does sound very divisive
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though & is clearly aimed at Lutfur Rahman and the allegation that his vote is focussed geographically
He is one of the main reasons this referendum is happening but the campaign against him and the Mayoral model (the only way he can get re-elected) is unwilling to state that
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Consistent - you do wonder why Newham Labour after a very deliberate process picked different referendum choices incl. Committee system
newhamforchange.org
But TH Labour made the decision in one night
Afraid of change?
But yes, Leader & Cabinet most common model in London
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But in 2010 voters rejected the Leader & Cabinet model option by 60% to 40%
So the last time we had a Leader & Cabinet model it was not supported at a referendum
So why do we want to repeat history again and ask the same question a 2nd time?
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All models have their flaws & I am not saying Leader & Cabinet does not have some advantages (mainly that if the leader goes too far they can be more easily removed)
But the Leader & Cabinet model is surprisingly similar to the Mayoral model in its powers incl. of patronage,
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the leader can give jobs to their mates
I have seen some claims about the Leader & Cabinet model which are wrong BUT some of the detail of how it will work will only be established later, such has been the rush
Will Cabinet members make decisions for their own departments or
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only collectively or will the leader retain Executive powers like the Mayor does today (although the Mayor recently said Cabinet decisions should made via a public vote in Cabinet but every vote so far has been unanimous!)
We do not know yet how the Leader system will work
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