In principle I do not have a difficulty with the notion of directly elected mayors. However, I have difficulty with the fact that this office was brought in without giving it any firm responsibility in the sphere of local government. I regard that as a retrograde step. We have to examine the responsibility of county managers in legislation and when we re-visit the issue of directly elected mayors we should do so in an all-encompassing manner. While we are not ready for it yet, we should come back to this matter in the future. I have a difficulty with electing someone into a primarily ceremonial role without giving him or her some serious managerial responsibilities as well. This is not a reflection on existing county managers. We need to look at the separation of authority between executive powers and directly elected mayors or chairpersons.