Jules Pipe has been the directly elected Mayor of Hackney since 2002, winning election in October 2002, and again in May 2006.

The Mayor is the political leader of the Council, and is responsible for setting the Council’s priorities and annual budget. He also has a wider role as a community leader and advocate of the borough; he chairs Team Hackney, which is the borough’s strategic partnership.

The Mayor serves a four year term, and appoints a Cabinet to support him in making decisions on the Council’s strategy, policies and budget. Together the Mayor and Cabinet are sometimes referred to as ′the Executive′. The Mayor and Cabinet recommend policy, strategy and the budget to the full Council. The Mayor and Cabinet also meet formally once a month to make decisions on how to implement these policies. They are the collective decision making body of the Council and have the power to make important decisions quickly. This power is balanced by the powers of the Overview and Scrutiny Board, the Standards Committee and the need to have proper consultation with other Councillors and the general public.

• Improving services and increasing opportunities for all, raising the life chances of the most disadvantaged
• Making sure the Council is high performing and efficient - putting service first
• Providing effective community leadership and involving the whole borough in what we do

Further information on the Mayor can be found on the Council website at www.hackney.gov.uk/mayor

Following a referendum, a new political system was introduced to Hackney in 2002, which involves Hackney residents voting for a directly elected Mayor. Hackney is one of only 13 local authorities in the country that have this form of governance; in most councils, instead of a directly elected Mayor, the top position is called ‘Leader of the Council’ and is taken by the elected ward councillor who is the leader of the largest political group on the Council. The main differences with the Mayoral model are that there is greater accountability with a focus on one individual, stronger and more stable leadership because the Mayor is elected for 4 years, and also a wider community leadership role, reflecting the fact that the Mayor has been elected by the whole borough.

Prior to 2002, the title ‘Mayor of Hackney’ referred to a ceremonial position; one councillor was chosen each year to represent the borough at civic events and carry out ceremonial functions. That post still exists, but is now referred to as the ‘Speaker of Hackney′ – the two posts shouldn’t be confused!