Salford elected mayor referendum voting under way

Polls have opened in a referendum in Salford over whether to have a directly elected mayor.

The vote was triggered after the English Democrat Party handed a petition with 10,500 signatures to the council last July.

Voting started at 07:00 GMT in the referendum, which has cost £200,000, and the polls close at 22:00 GMT.

If the vote is yes, the first election will be held in May. Council officials have prepared a draft new constitution.

Ballot papers have the question "Should the electors for the area of Salford elect a Mayor who, with a cabinet, will be in charge of our local services and lead Salford City Council?".

The result of the referendum is expected at about 01:00 GMT on Friday.

Eleven English cities, including Manchester, will vote in May on whether to have elected mayors.

The Government announced on Wednesday that it plans to hold any resulting mayoral elections to Thursday 15 November, the same date as polling for 40 police commissioners.