‘Choose 100 residents at random for advice on city virus recovery’

AROUND 100 citizens randomly selected should advise on how Cardiff recovers from the impacts of coronavirus, according to Liberal Democrat councillors.

Citizens’ assemblies bring together a representative sample of the public to debate and explore political problems – similar to how juries work in courts.

They have been used in places like Canada and Ireland, where the assembly proposed a referendum on legalising abortion.

A group of people are brought together to discuss an issue and decide what they think should happen.

They are chosen to reflect the population in age, gender, ethnicity and social class.

Recently in the UK, a citizens’ assembly advised Oxford City Council on how to respond to the climate crisis, while Tory leadership contender Rory Stewart proposed an assembly to tackle the Brexit deadlock in parliament.

Now in Cardiff, Liberal Democrat councillors are proposing about 100 people to explore the best way the city can recover from the impact of Covid-19.

Cardiff council bosses recently warned of the risk of thousands of job losses across the city as they set out the plan for recovery.

Measures already announced include giving extra space to pedestrians and restaurants by closing Castle Street to cars and cutting car-parking spaces in Wellfield Road. Streets near some schools have also been shut, to give pupils and parents extra space to socially distance.

While widely welcomed, these new measures have all been criticised for a lack of consultation: by local businesses relying on car parking, people who live in the streets shut near schools, and councillors whose wards are affected.

Councillor Rhys Taylor, Liberal Democrat group leader, said: “In the rush to get things done since March, people have felt shut out, ignored and forgotten. That risks setting us back and taking off the table big issues and aspirations around public transport and re-shaping the economy.

“We are entering a critical moment; we have one chance to deliver meaningful and lasting positive change for our city.

But we have to bring people with us.

“Whether we agree or not with the aims and objectives of proposed changes, it isn’t right that change is implemented in such a top-down manner.

“The last few months have been a huge period of change, we now need to start listening to what people want for the future.”