Of all the manifest faults of the Cameroonian coalition, most poignant for me was the accusation by a close friend that ‘they wouldn’t be able to find Sheffield on a bloody map’. I thought about it for a moment and, with heavy heart, realised I agreed. Sheffield is England’s fourth largest city and quite possibly its least talked about. Indeed, the last time Sheffield was a national talking point was when the government actively damaged the Steel City by rescinding the £80m loan which would have allowed the world’s sole remaining independent steel works, Sheffield Forgemasters, to expand. Since the furore surrounding the loan that never was, the government appears satisfied with mere passive neglect, such as the recent snub of not being included in the 10 UK cities offered £100m for ultrafast broadband. In its two years of power the coalition has proved it doesn’t care for Sheffield. This is why I believe Sheffield needs, perhaps more than any other city, an elected mayor.

The first and most important thing a mayor will bring to Sheffield is a powerful voice for the national stage. Someone whose first loyalty is to the people of Sheffield and not as with many MPs – of which Nick Clegg is a first rate example – to themselves and their parties. This will mean a future mayor will act selfishly in Sheffield’s interest irrespective of political allegiance. Sheffield will have a leader who can act as an ambassador for the city: encouraging investment, providing  a suitable home and infrastructure for business, and protecting the citizens of Sheffield from the very worst excesses of coalition cuts.

The No campaign argues that a mayor’s role is already fulfilled by that of the council leader. False. While the vast majority of council leaders such as Sheffield’s own Julie Dore do an excellent job for their cities, they often simply don’t have the tools or power to enact substantial change. The increase in power that comes from an elected mayor means we have someone who can make the changes Sheffield needs, whereas a council leader can merely identify them. The government cannot ignore a leader with a mandate from a city of over half a million people, whereas it can ignore someone elected by a few dozen councillors. An elected mayor will be Sheffield’s face for the outside world, a council leader, however intelligent or popular, will not be.

If we do not vote for a mayor next week we will slowly stagnate. A gap will form between Sheffield and our great northern rivals Manchester, Leeds and Liverpool, a gap that will widen exponentially if they have the power a mayor brings while Sheffield stews in the 20^th century. The mere fact that we will not have a seat in the biannual meetings with the prime minister that all mayors will enjoy means Sheffield will be even more overlooked than it already is. The Sheffield renaissance which occurred under New Labour will slow, then stop, then thrust into reverse, while other cities with far smaller engines move into overdrive, an elected mayor in the driver’s seat.

The referendum on May 3 is an opportunity for Sheffield. However, like all the most important opportunities, the danger of not taking it is vast. Indeed, adopting a mayor is not so much an opportunity for Sheffield, as it is a necessity. A week today Sheffield is asked determine its future success. As someone who loves Sheffield, I hope we say yes.

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Brad Marshall is a Progress member and Labour Student, and he tweets @bradmarshall92

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Photo: iwouldstay