ROSS-ON-WYE Town Council has reversed its proposed alternative method of selecting a mayor for the coming year after discrepancies were outlined for the seniority preference scheme.

The new mayoral selection proposal had been aimed at giving all members the opportunity to serve as mayor of the town.

But members said last week there wasn’t time to resolve the issues before the new mayor is elected in May and voted to debate it over the coming year in time for the mayoral selection, following next year’s election in May 2027.

Cllr Richard McEvoy, Reform UK, said after last week’s meeting: “Our duty is, first and foremost, to do what is best for the town.

“However, it is with a sense of shock and dismay that we are increasingly witnessing what appears to be a potential unelected entity steering Ross Town Council policy.

“The recent hijacking the mayoral election process is a case in point as it’s a mystifying reversal regarding how we select our town mayor.

“Currently, the mayor is chosen by a simple majority vote—a system highly susceptible to party politics.

“At a management committee meeting, the coalition proposed a new, entirely equitable methodology to remove politics from the equation.

“The proposal outlined a transparent process for electing the mayor based primarily on a councillor's time served.

“This methodology was formally agreed upon. We all walked away thinking the matter was settled.

“Yet, at the council’s most recent meeting, the 'whip' had clearly spoken again. The majority party arrived with a single, passionate voice to completely dismantle and reverse the agreed-upon proposal.

“I have never seen the majority party speak with such coordinated passion on a single topic. There were objections of every description thrown at the proposal.

“The irony? If any of them had actually read the methodology document, they would have seen their queries had already been fully addressed.”