Mayor Steve Rotheram announces top team for Liverpool City Region
Following May’s local elections Liverpool City Region Mayor Steve Rotheram has announced a refreshed line up for the Combined Authority’s cabinet, including the appointment of St Helens Council leader David Baines as Deputy Mayor.
The appointments will be confirmed by Mayor Rotheram at the Combined Authority’s Annual General Meeting on Friday 9 June.
Cllr David Baines
Under its constitution, agreed by government before the election of the first metro mayor, the Combined Authority is made up of the elected leaders of its six constituent local authorities: Halton, Knowsley, Liverpool, Sefton, St Helens and Wirral and chaired by the directly elected mayor of the region, the area’s most senior politician.
The Mayor has no influence over the selection and appointment of council leaders who are democratically elected in their local areas.
Speaking about the proposed appointments, Mayor Rotheram said:
“We have an important year ahead of us as we enter into the final months of this mayoral term ahead of next May’s elections. To ensure that the Combined Authority continues working to deliver my manifesto, I have tweaked portfolios so that we can continue to focus on emerging priorities.
“I want to make our region the fairest, strongest and greenest in the country, take greater control of our transport system, help to lead the Green Industrial Revolution and give local young people the opportunities they deserve to get on in life.”
Paying tribute to outgoing leaders Mayor Joanne Anderson and Cllr Janette Williamson, Mayor Rotheram said:
“I want to thank Jo and Jan for their hard work and contributions in helping to deliver my vision for a region with no one left behind. As the first women leaders to sit on the Combined Authority, they were trailblazers and I am grateful to them for their service to our city region, as well as the areas they served.
“It will not have escaped anybody’s notice that this means the Combined Authority is now in a position where all of its leaders are middle aged, white and male.
“Each leader will have a nominated woman deputy to help address this imbalance, but in the longer term, I am looking to commission a piece of work that will seek to address representation in politics across the city region and ensure that we do more to deliver diversity at all levels that better reflect the communities we represent.”
The full list of nominations is below:
| Portfolio | Portfolio Holder |
| Policy, Reform and Resources | Mayor Steve Rotheram |
| Employment, Education and Skills | Councillor Ian Maher |
| Digital and Innovation | Councillor Paul Stuart |
| Housing and Spatial Planning | Councillor Graham Morgan |
| Net Zero and Air Quality | Councillor David Baines |
| Economic Development and Business | Councillor Mike Wharton |
| Transport | Councillor Liam Robinson |
| *Criminal Justice | Emily Spurrell |
*Indicates non-voting co-opted member