A City of London councillor has warned of “savage cuts” after the Corporation rejected a proposal to reduce its number of elected members before the 2029 elections.
Common Councillor Leyla Boulton had urged the Policy and Resources Committee to undertake a “limited electoral review” to assess how to shrink the assembly, which currently comprises 100 common councillors and 25 Aldermen and Alderwomen. All 100 common council seats will face election in 2029.
Her amendment was defeated by 18 votes to three, with two abstentions. Cllr Boulton said the rejection left the Corporation unprepared for a projected £70 million budget shortfall arising from the Government’s Fair Funding reforms.
The case for change
Cllr Boulton described the current structure as an “unusually large and unwieldy elected body” that needed reform before the financial pressure arrived. She pointed to a bloated committee system and the fact that some members are elected with fewer than 100 votes.
“We have 100 common councillors and 25 Aldermen representing a tiny geographical area,” she told the committee. “As we ask government, businesses and residents to give us more tax revenue, surely we must demonstrate that we are prepared to reform ourselves first.”
Common Councillor Steve Goodman supported the motion, noting that external stakeholders viewed the Corporation as “the last rotten borough” and expected action on councillor numbers.
Opposition and objections
Several members sympathised with the motion but raised concerns about timing. Deputy Chris Hayward, Chair of Policy and Resources, questioned whether cutting councillor numbers would actually save money. “Reducing the number of common councillors does not save huge sums of money,” he said. “That’s just a fact.”
Deputy Tom Sleigh, Chair of Planning and Transportation, suggested the issue was not a priority for stakeholders. He told members in jest that when he meets with developers and commuters, “no, they are worried about our siloed working” – not councillor numbers.
Deputy James Thomson, who chaired a working party that had considered the issue, argued the Corporation should focus on immediate cost-saving measures rather than spend effort on reducing member numbers.
The 2029 reckoning
After the vote, Cllr Boulton warned that the rejection would leave the Corporation facing difficult choices. “By 2029, savage cuts will need to be made to meet the projected £70 million shortfall,” she said.
She added that a smaller, more efficient assembly would have helped the Corporation appear credible when negotiating with government and representing London’s business community. “How do we look? We look bloated, we look out of touch,” she said.
In a statement after the meeting, Cllr Boulton said cutting councillor numbers would “create the momentum for wider reform and consequential saving ahead of a financial cliff edge in 2029”. She also flagged that making councillor places scarcer could tackle the problem of uncontested elections, which she described as “an affront to democracy”.
