A group of Labour backbenchers have formed a committee to get their voices heard as Bradford Council prepares to make history with a radical restructure.

The backbenchers - who fear they may be isolated from decisions when the authority throws out its Victorian structure - will call themselves the 1999 committee and hold regular meetings. The next will be in January when they will meet to decide how to operate.

But today, Council leader Councillor Ian Greenwood said he was not sure why the backbenchers thought they might be isolated.

"The executive will meet in public, holding discussions and make decisions in public," he said.

"And if there are broad-based policy decisions to be made, they will clearly be discussed first at the Labour group meetings -- and backbenchers will have an input. I don't know what we can do to make it more open. We have got probably the most open system of any local government authority in the country with the new arrangements."

The first meeting of 12 backbenchers has appointed Councillor Phil Thornton (Lab, Shipley East) secretary and will send out nomination papers for a chairman and other officers.

Some backbenchers say they are concerned about payments and roles and responsibilities as the new Council goes into the Millennium. Coun Thornton said the 1999 committee was in line with the backbenchers committee in Westminster. "We need a forum for debate. We have all got a job to do. We want to do it well and we feel this is a very positive approach."

He said the committee would make a positive contribution and stressed its members were fully behind the Labour leadership. At tomorrow night's meeting of Bradford Council, a system where key decisions will be taken by a 16-member all party executive will be agreed.

The executive's decisions will be examined by scrutiny committees and a standards committee chaired by the Bishop of Bradford, the Right Reverend David Smith, which will look at standards of integrity, conduct and irregularities.

"This is a truly historic moment for us all in the Bradford district," said Coun Greenwood. "We will be replacing a system which was first introduced in the 19th Century with a modern, more streamlined and accountable one which should help us to meet the challenges of the 21st century. The new structure is meant to cut political red tape in the Council by abolishing the cumbersome committee system to speed up decision making and expose the executive members to much greater accountability.

"Not only will the new system be more efficient, it will allow ward councillors more time to meet their constituents and to tackle those issues of most concern to local people."

Converted for the new archive on 30 June 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.