WILL you be voting in the election for a Greater Manchester Mayor on May 4?

I will, but I suspect the great majority of my fellow Boltonians will be either not aware or not bothered.

This is a pity because the winner of this contest will become a powerful figure leading the Greater Manchester Combined Authority as it copes with devolved responsibilities involving transport, health and social care, housing, post-16 education and budgets for our police and fire services.

The Mayor’s cabinet will be made up of the leaders of 10 Greater Manchester councils including Bolton, Bury and Wigan.

I have never been entirely convinced of the case for elected Mayors, but this is where we are now — it is a good time to be interested in the successes or failures of this new addition to local governance.

If I judge the general view correctly in Bolton, it is that understandable affection for a Lancashire heritage is paramount and that, anyway, all available spare cash will be spent in Manchester.

Local politicians of all stripes seem reluctant to mention the words “Greater Manchester” — maybe for that reason.

To my mind that is just not good enough. We citizens need to feel that our town politicians will be fighting our corner to make sure we do not miss out on any crumbs that might be falling from this particular table.

Could the Bolton Council leader, Cllr Cliff Morris, be persuaded to contribute regular Combined Authority updates to The Bolton News once the new Mayor takes charge?

It would also be good to know what arrangements will be put in place to scrutinise the Authority’s decisions.

Open sessions? Regular press conferences?

Tony Lloyd, the Greater Manchester Police and Crime Commissioner, was elected to that new post in 2012 when the turn-out of voters was 13.93 per cent of an electorate consisting of more than two million.

I suspect the response will be better on May 4, but not by enough to convince me that democracy is working perfectly.

Alan Calvert

Harwood