Salford set to vote on elected mayor after petition handed in

The people of Salford are set to get a chance to vote on whether the city should have an elected mayor.

A 10,500-signature petition calling for a mayor was handed into the council offices at 10:30 BST, collected by members of the English Democrats Party.

Council officials will have to verify signatures against the electoral register before a referendum can take place.

Twelve English boroughs will be having referenda, including Manchester.

The English Democrats Party is aiming to have an elected mayor referendum in every English borough or city council.

'Make sure'

Stephen Morris, the party's North West chairman, said: "We found a lot of support on the streets for an elected mayor when we were collecting the signatures."

He added: "We only needed 5% of the electoral roll which was 8,500 but we got 10,500."

Kevin Brady, Deputy Returning Officer at Salford City Council, said: "If we receive a petition we have to check it to make sure it's valid.

"This means checking there is the right number of dated signatures with full names and addresses of people who are registered to vote in Salford.

"If we get a valid petition we will notify the petitioner within one month that there will be a referendum. We also have to inform the secretary of state of this decision."