CARDIFF council leader Rodney Berman has insisted he will continue as council leader – despite facing calls to stand down after failing to secure his party’s backing to stand for the Assembly.

The Liberal Democrat lost out to fellow Cardiff council executive member Nigel Howells for the party’s nomination to contest the Cardiff Central seat at next year’s Assembly elections.

The snub led the Conservative’s Cardiff North AM Jonathan Morgan to say yesterday he “did not believe that he (Berman) can continue in his role” and that he “lacked the stomach for the top job”.

Morgan, writing on his personal blog, said: “Berman is deeply damaged by this.

“He failed to persuade his colleagues, many of them in his own council cabinet, that he should be their candidate.

“This lack of confidence from his own party casts doubt on his own future at the helm of the capital city’s local authority.

“Secondly and perhaps most seriously is that we still have a council leader who had decided by applying to be an Assembly candidate that he no longer wanted his present job after next year.

“I have always believed that Berman lacked the vision and ambition for the capital city; it’s now obvious that he also lacks the stomach for the top job.”

Mr Morgan proceeded to berate Mr Berman’s record since he took over the council in 2004, saying his record demonstrated a “poverty of leadership”.

“Running a local authority is not just about collecting bin bags, for Cardiff it means having a leadership which can see where our capital city needs to be in the next 10 to 20 years,” he said.

Mr Berman firmly outlined his intention to carry on, dismissing Mr Morgan’s criticism as “political knockabout”.

He said: “I am fully committed to the job as leader of the council, indeed many of the members I have spoken to in Cardiff Central were keen for me to continue with that role.

“I think what Jonathan has written is the party political knockabout to expect from a political opponent.

“Given he has fallen out with his own party in the Assembly in recent years, I think he would prefer to do my job than be in the Assembly.”

Berman defended his record as leader and put his failure to secure the Cardiff Central nomination down simply to “not persuading enough people” he should go on to the Senedd.

“The city has gone forward leaps and bounds over recent years,” he said.

“We have plenty of vision – we haven’t lost our appetite as a party of wanting to make improvements and introduce quality facilities. I have got a terrific job that gives me a lot of satisfaction.”

Councillor Howells said: “It’s a tremendous honour to be chosen by local people to take over from Jenny Randerson who’s done so much for Cardiff Central, first as a councillor then as an Assembly Member.

“I will fight day in day out for a better deal for local residents – all I have ever wanted to do is to serve the people and that is something that I look forward to doing if elected next year.”

Ms Randerson added: “I’ve known Nigel for many years and he’ll be a strong champion for our area in the Assembly.”