There is a distinct lack of awareness among the West Midlands public on who the mayor of the West Midlands is, according to Centre for Cities’ polling by Savanta ComRes ahead the election in May.

According to the poll, there is lower public awareness of the incumbent mayor Andy Street or the current mayoral term, particularly when compared to his counterparts in other cities.

With less than two months until the election, two in ten (22 per cent) in the West Midlands could name the mayor, while almost eight in ten (77 per cent) could not name a policy achievement from the past three years. The policy achievement most often pointed to from the past three years was improving public transport (8 per cent).

The findings indicate a need for more public information about the office of the West Midlands’ Mayor, their responsibilities and priorities ahead of May’s election and into the next mayoral term, Centre for Cities has said.

When asked what areas politicians in the West Midlands should be prioritising, respondents most often ranked healthcare (54 per cent), housing (43 per cent) and the emergency services (40 per cent) among their top three priorities.

A significantly smaller proportion of people in the West Midlands (29 per cent) say they are certain to vote in May’s election. In Greater Manchester for example, almost half (44 per cent) say they are certain to vote.

Centre for Cities’ chief executive Andrew Carter (pictured) said: “The office of the West Midlands Mayor is just three years old but there is already overwhelming public support for it to be given more powers to improve people’s lives and level up the city-region.

“But as the West Midlands gears up for its second mayoral campaign, there is no escaping the fact that much more public information is needed to inform the public about the Mayor’s work. Irrespective of who wins in May, improving transport infrastructure, skills provision and access to housing should be at the top of their agenda.”

Centre for Cities will be hosting a mayoral hustings alongside Greater Birmingham Chambers of Commerce on 17 March.

To book onto the event, visit https://www.greaterbirminghamchambers.com/networking-events/events-calendar/listing/west-midlands-metro-mayor-elections-2020-economy-hustings-200317/details