Opposition city councillors have launched a blistering attack on Marvin Rees, labelling cabinet meetings “toxic”, “condescending” and like a “royal court” after the mayor criticised them for failing to attend. Mr Rees scolded members for not showing up to the Bristol City Council chamber on Tuesday (October 4) and said it could undermine the handover from the mayoral system to cross-party decision-making committees in 2024.
But Tory leader Cllr Mark Weston and Green leader Cllr Heather Mack have hit back at the Labour mayor, saying the meetings are nothing more than a rubber-stamping exercise for decisions made beforehand in private and are pointless to anyone outside his “charmed ruling inner-circle”. Speaking at the end of the meeting, Mr Rees said: “This was the most poorly attended cabinet from councillors that I have chaired since being elected mayor.
“And if we are serious about the committee system, it’s really important that councillors begin attending these meetings because they need to familiarise themselves with the decision-making processes in the council and what’s actually going on. The committee system will require attendance at cabinet meetings beyond the level that councillors currently put in.
