The government has proposed a devolution deal for York and North Yorkshire, which it says will bring over £540m of investment to the areas over 30 years.
The deal will create a combined authority across the region with new powers transferred to a directly elected mayor. According to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC), this will enable local leaders to better address specific needs within the region and drive regeneration.
Greg Clark, levelling up secretary, signed the deal on 1 August (Yorkshire Day) along with Cllr Carl Les, leader of North Yorkshire County Council, and Cllr Keith Aspden, leader of City of York Council.
Clark said: “Yorkshire Day 2022 is an historic one. It marks the return of powers and resources from London to much of the historic North Riding.
“Levelling up – driving prosperity and opportunity in all parts of Britain – is done best when people locally can forge the future of their area. This deal is a big step in that direction.”
This proposed deal could unlock 30 years of investment to improve economic prosperity and long-term opportunities for all of our residents and businesses.
Driving local growth
The directly elected mayor will have powers to invest the funding from Whitehall in transport, housing, and education to drive local growth, and could invest upwards of £95m a year in York and North Yorkshire.
Les told Room151: “The announcement of a proposed devolution deal will see the total funding agreed with government rising above £540m for York and North Yorkshire.
“The proposed deal would allow us to tackle a wide range of issues from improving skills and education to bringing in more investment to the region, helping improve transport links and providing much-needed affordable housing.”
The deal includes an investment of up to £50m to deliver the regeneration of the York Central site, £22.6m of funding to support the building of new homes on brownfield land, £18m per year in “Gainshare” funding and £7m to drive green economic growth.
Aspden said: “This proposed deal could unlock 30 years of investment to improve economic prosperity and long-term opportunities for all of our residents and businesses.”
The mayor will also have greater powers to improve local skills to ensure these meet the needs of the economy, improve and better integrate local transport, and take on roles and functions of the police, fire and crime commissioner.
The chance to have a metro mayor representing York and North Yorkshire following a potential election in May 2024 would give us a hugely influential figure to promote the region and a strong voice to foster close working relationships with the government to evolve the deal for devolution.
Metro mayor
Les added: “Devolution is about moving decision-making powers away from Whitehall and Westminster to local leaders, and there will be real and tangible benefits for the hundreds of thousands of people who live and work in York and North Yorkshire.
“The chance to have a metro mayor representing York and North Yorkshire following a potential election in May 2024 would give us a hugely influential figure to promote the region and a strong voice to foster close working relationships with the government to evolve the deal for devolution.”
The deal is the first of 13 devolution negotiations named in the Levelling Up White Paper to come to fruition.
The devolution deal is subject to approval by the full council.
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