How Västerås is run 2017 August

Transcription

1 How Västerås is run August 2017

2 The municipal assignment Municipal activities are founded upon something which is called local selfgovernment. This means that the citizens together run many of their affairs on a local basis. In this way, the decisions are taken close to those who the decisions affect. More people be come involved and power is spread out. This in turn strengthens democracy. In 1989, Sweden signed the European Convention on Local Self- Government. This means that Sweden has decided to guarantee certain basic principles. As defined by the convention, local self-government gives every municipality both the right to and the opportunity to manage many public affairs and to do so under their own responsibility and in the interest of the citizens. The principle of public access to official records gives to everybody, both Swedes and foreign citizens, the opportunity to read any public documents held by authorities and departments. The aim of this is to provide insight into how the community is governed, both locally in Västerås and throughout Sweden. Public access to official records is a right which in principle has existed in Sweden since It is one of the most important elements of a democratic society. Every municipality in Sweden has tasks which it is legally required to carry out and services it must provide. Among these are, for example, social welfare, education, town planning and building, health care, environmental protection, waste disposal, street cleaning, rescue services, civil contingency plans, water supply and sewerage. In addition to these, the City of Västerås carries out some work on a voluntary basis, for example, work on cultural and recreational activities. The ultimate responsibility for all city activities lies with the City Council Assembly.

3 Approximately people work for the City of Västerås. Teachers, social welfare secretaries, assistant nurses, youth recreation leaders and many others play important roles in other people s lives. Much more is needed, however, to create a good community. In order to achieve an attractive city, we need expert city planners and park workers. Clean water and heating require engineers of various kinds. All these things are part of the municipal assignment. WHO DOES WHAT IN VÄSTERÅS The City of Västerås is a politically governed organisation. This means that the main responsibility for municipal activities lies with elected politicians. These politicians decide how the city is to be organised and what programmes are to be carried out. At a general election held once every four years, the people of the city decide how the mandates to sit on the

4 City Council Assembly are distributed. On the City Executive Committee there is an equivalent distribution of mandates. In addition to the municipal departments, there are also a number of wholly-owned and partly-owned companies. The boards of directors of these companies are appointed by the City Council Assembly. Finally, there are a number of joint authorities and foundations with the City of Västerås represented on their boards. CITY COUNCIL ASSEMBLY The City Council Assembly can be likened to the parliament of the City of Västerås. It has 61 members, mandated after the general election every fourth year. At the same time, 32 deputies are appointed. The mandates are distributed in proportion to the number of votes received from the electorate. The City Council Assembly sits every month except for during the summer break in July and August. The City Council Assembly is the city s highest decision-making body and decides every year, among other things, the rate of local income tax. Another important task is to evaluate and follow-up how the City Executive Committee and the other committees are performing and whether they are achieving their aims. The sessions in the City Hall are public and anybody who wants to can come to listen. The chair of the City Council Assembly is held by Social Democrat Ulla Persson. After the local elections of 2014, the Social Democrats, Christian Democrats, Centre Party and Green Party have been governing the City of Västerås and will do so until Produktion: Västerås stad, Servicepartner Foto: Pia Nordlander

5 Organisation chart Organisation chart City Council Assembly City Executive Committee City Chief Executive City Executive Office City Audit Committee Nominations Committee Electoral Committee Crisis Management Committee Chief Guardians Committee PARTY MANDATES Election Social Democratic Party New Moderate Party Sweden Democrats 6 3 Liberal Party 5 7 The Left Party 4 4 The Green Party 4 4 Centre Party 4 2 Christian Democrats 2 2 Total Pre-school Committee Compulsory School Committee Childcare and Education Department Education and Labour Market Committee Individuals and Family Affairs Committee Disabilities Committee Social Services Department Elderly Committee Technical Services Committee Property Management Committee Technical Services and Property Management Department Sports and Outdoor Recreation Committee Culture, Sports and Leisure Department Culture Committee City Archive Building Committee Urban Development Department Environment and Consumer Committee Environment and Public Health Department Skultuna City District Committee Board of Community Care Board of Support, Leisure and Environmental Care Board of Internal Services Department Skultuna City District Department Community Care Department Support, Leisure and Environmental Care Department Internal Services Department