Press release: OBV sited in Government commission recommendation

to those elected are among the proposals in the Councillors Commission reports 61 recommendations which cites OBV several times including to encourage greater participation in local elections.

At the heart of the recommendations from the Councillors Commission is the demand for an explicit duty to be placed on local authorities to disseminate clear information about how councils and other local agencies work as well as promote the role of councillors and the activities of elected members. This idea has been piloted through OBV's 'Who Runs London' project funded by London Councils.

Today's average age for a councillor is 58.3 with only 3.5 per cent under 30 and fewer than one in three are women. Only 4.1 per cent of local representatives come from ethnic minority backgrounds. These statistics are clearly a key concern for the Commission and mentioned early in the reports. In recommendation 1 it is suggested: Perhaps the most well-known targeting scheme is that run by Operation Black Vote and Bristol City Council which seeks to raise awareness and confidence among people from ethnic minority backgrounds and to encourage their involvement as elected members.

In recommendation 37 it is suggested: "National political parties are urged to adopt fresh thinking about candidates to local government; they should encourage local parties to recruit people who share their values but may not have a lengthy record of party activity and work with a range of organisations such as Operation Black Vote and the Fawcett Society to develop presentational and political skills in under-represented groups."

Dame Jane Roberts, Chair of the Commission, said: "Our democracy faces a major problem of disenchantment and disengagement. The Commission's key message is that building effective and vibrant local democracy is a vital part of the solution to this wider malaise. We have a real opportunity to strengthen democracy in this country - we cannot afford to ignore it. The Commission has proposed a package of reforms that we believe will renew and reinvigorate local democracy. We intend them to open up a wider debate about meeting the urgent challenge for change."

Ashok Viswanathan, Assistant Director of OBV said: "Elected councillors are on the front line in their communities. It is for this reason any steps made to help more people from BME communities to stand are positive. However, if more BME councillors are to be elected thought and action need to go not just to recruitment but retention. The councillor training and support proposed in the recommendations give encouragement that the government and the commissioners mean business. "

Notes to Editors:

The report can be viewed here: http://www.communities.gov.uk/documents/localgovernment/pdf/583990