I REALLY must take issue with Dick Eberlie's comments (Letters, August 12) about the role of the mayor.
Naturally, the mayor does have a limited ceremonial role. However, the notion that he or she is always the 'face' of the council, and can neither express a view nor fulfil the requirements of representative democracy, is an outmoded absurdity, based on an over-inflated view of the role's importance. We are talking about the local mayor, not the Queen!
Perhaps such a convention was regarded as acceptable in the days when decisions were made by the gentry behind closed doors with a nudge, a wink and a funny handshake. But it is hardly appropriate today, where we expect our representatives to defend and promote the interests of the people who elected them. Or has West Devon not moved with the times?
Ann Keelan
Whitchurch