Leaders of Birmingham's main political parties and groups will go head-to-head this Thursday at the first city-wide hustings ahead of the most crucial local elections in a generation. Polling day is rapidly approaching, and our special broadcast on Thursday, April 23, will help voters make up their minds.
We are pitting party leaders and individual candidates against each other in front of a live audience of Birmingham residents. Questions will cover a wide range of issues, from road safety to the state of our roads, from immigration and youth services to bin collections.
This event is part of our comprehensive coverage of the local elections in Birmingham, where our political and community reporting experts are bringing you all the information, insight, and analysis you need ahead of polling day on May 7. Neighbouring councils including Sandwell, Dudley, Wolverhampton, Solihull, Walsall, and Coventry will also be going to the polls.
But it is the future leadership of Birmingham City Council, the biggest of its kind in Europe, that has grabbed the nation's attention, with a wave of independents and the charge of Reform expected to cause a massive upset in this Labour stronghold.
Local party leaders will gather at BirminghamLive's headquarters in the city centre on Thursday morning for our specially recorded hustings event in front of a live audience. The whole event will then be available to watch free at your convenience on YouTube and Facebook, giving every resident the chance to dissect who deserves your vote.
Our panel will include candidates from the Conservatives, Greens, Labour, Liberal Democrats, and Reform parties, alongside representatives of the independent movement. Our would-be political leaders will set out how they intend to take charge of the council's £4.4 billion budget, 9,000 staff, and multitude of services.
A total of 101 Birmingham council seats across 69 wards are up for grabs, with a record number of candidates vying for public support. The parties fielding a full slate of candidates will all be represented:
- Conservatives: Robert Alden, Birmingham Local Conservatives group leader, standing in Erdington ward.
- Greens: Julien Pritchard, one of two Green councillors and the local leader, standing in Druids Heath and Monyhull ward.
- Labour: John Cotton, Birmingham Labour group leader and current council leader, standing in Glebe Farm and Tile Cross ward.
- Liberal Democrats: Roger Harmer, Birmingham Liberal Democrats group leader, standing in Acocks Green ward.
- Reform UK: Jex Parkin, Sutton Coldfield coordinator, standing in Kingstanding ward.
There are also 73 independent candidates standing. It was impossible to include all of them. We have invited independent Nosheen Khalid, who is standing in Alum Rock, and Independent Candidate Alliance's Shakeel Afsar to field readers' questions. The parties also contesting seats in Birmingham are the Workers Party (27 candidates), Your Party (five candidates), and the Trade Unionist and Socialist Party, who are fielding seven candidates. A full list of all candidates standing is available on our website.
Everything the city council does affects your quality of life. It runs adult care and children's social services, oversees most of our schools including special needs education, and is responsible for youth services, libraries, and community facilities. The council maintains our highways, streets, and parks and collects our rubbish. It sets our council taxes and lobbies on our behalf to government. It also sets out the tone and vision of what the city can look like in the future, including plans for regeneration, growth, and innovation. We are one of the youngest and most diverse populations in the country. Some 23% of our population is under 16, and more than half of our residents are from Black, Asian, and ethnic minority backgrounds.
Check out the full coverage of our hustings, including every word said by our candidates, from tomorrow afternoon onwards. You won't want to miss it!
