By Harry Mottram: The election battle to replace Labour MP and Metro Mayor Dan Norris on Thursday May 1st has become a four-horse race after the Liberal Democrats announced Oli Henman would be their candidate. He joins Helen Godwin for Labour, Steve Smith for the Conservatives and Mary Page for the Green Party – who replaced their original choice of Heather Mack who decided to concentrate on her work as a Bristol councillor.
The Metro Mayor or the Mayor for the West of England Combined Authority or WECA covers the regions of South Gloucestershire, Bristol and Bath & North East Somerset and is responsible for the strategic administration for planning, transport and skills.
In his statement, Oli Henman said: “I’m committed to cutting waste and red tape in the Mayor’s office and putting power back where it belongs: in the hands of local communities. The West of England Mayor has a key role to play in delivering affordable and accessible transport, sustainable housing and the jobs of the future.
“The crucial funding available for transport must be better allocated. We have seen that funds for bus service improvement have been wasted on unnecessary gimmicks like the ‘birthday bus’ scheme. I want to ensure our communities are at the heart of decision making and that the region becomes more accessible for everyone.
“The West of England deserves leadership that listens, collaborates, and delivers for residents in these challenging times. Unlike the complacency of Labour and Conservative administrations, the Lib Dems have proven their ability to deliver locally, and I’m ready to bring that energy and focus as Mayor.”
The Liberal Democrats have never won The West of England Combined Authority election first created in 2017 with previous incumbents being Tim Bowles for the Tories and currently Labour’s Dan Norris. He has to step down as be became an MP last year for North East Somerset and Hanham and his party’s rules dictate it. In the last election which like the one in 2017 there were two rounds – in the first round it saw the Lib Dems’ Stephen Williams polling just over 41,000 votes with the Greens’ Jerome Thomas on 54,919, the Conservative’s Samuel Williams on 72,415 and Dan Norris on 84,434. Whether other parties or independents join the election is to be seen. This time there will only be one round – so first past the post.
The Lib Dems will be counting on a strong showing and a potential upset with Walcot Bath and North East Councillor Oli Henman as their candidate and with a Lib Dem administration in Bath as well as the MP Wera Hobhouse.
The Conservatives will be seeking to win back the Mayoralty from Labour and to rebuild after the disastrous 2024 General Election.
Labour may have won in the past with Dan Norris (who was well known in the area having previously been an MP) but the Government has taken a few knocks since taking office and it was the Greens who ousted them from office in Bristol. They will hope for a second victory and must start as favourites.
And although they were third in the last election the Green Party will hope to overhaul Labour as they did in Bristol – perhaps a long shot but in politics nothing is certain.
For more details on what the Metro Mayor does visit https://www.westofengland-ca.gov.uk/about-us/the-mayor/
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Harry Mottram is a freelance journalist. Follow him on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, Pinterest, Telegram, TikTok and Email:harryfmottram@gmail.com
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