Devolution

In England, devolution is the transfer of powers and funding from national to local government. It is important because it ensures that decisions are made closer to the -

• local people
• communities
• businesses

they affect.

Hull and East Riding of Yorkshire Councils have agreed a devolution deal with Government. It was announced in the 2023 Autumn Statement.

You can view the Hull and East Yorkshire Combined Authority Proposal.

Following councillors’ approval on Thursday 21 December, a statutory public consultation took place, for 8 weeks. Consultation started on Tuesday 2 January 2024 and ended on Tuesday 27 February 2024.

The consultation feedback is now being analysed by an independent body and a report on the findings will be made available to the public by the end of March.

Should the results show that the public is in favour of the devolution proposal, the Hull and East Riding Unitary Leaders’ Board will meet on Thursday 28 March to decide whether to submit a final proposal to the Government and agree a series of other next steps in the process.

Devolution will create a combined authority that acts as a strategic entity which would not replace either council, merely add value at a more strategic and wider geographical level.

More information about devolution is available from the Local Government Association as well as the YouTube video below -

What devolution means for Hull and East Yorkshire

Hull and East Yorkshire have negotiated a devolution deal with the government. This would see the creation of a mayoral combined authority that comes with £400million of funding. This is £13.44million per year over 30 years.

Hull and East Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority (MCA) would also be able to take decisions for the whole of the area.

They will be on issues like -

• transport
• adult education and skills
• housing investment
• regeneration

The Proposal

The proposal would bring significant investment into the area. It will help to create more job opportunities and establish the Hull and East Yorkshire MCA, led by a directly elected mayor, who could be elected in May 2025.

Key aspects of the proposal includes -

• £400million, which is £13.34million a year, investment funding over 30 years, to drive growth and deliver local priorities
• up to £15m in 2024 to 25 to support transport, flood and coastal erosion programmes across the area, including a coastal regeneration programme in the East Riding
• £5m in 2024 to 25 to support local economic growth priorities, including any further expansion of Siemens Gamesa offshore wind facility at Alexandra Dock in Hull
• £4.6m to pave the way for the building of new homes on brownfield land in 2024 to 25
• UK Shared Prosperity Fund planning and delivery from 2025 to 26
• new powers to shape local skills provision, including devolution of the core adult education budget
• new powers to drive regeneration and build more affordable homes
• new powers to improve and integrate the regional transport network, with a multi-million-pound integrated transport budget
• a commitment to rail electrification between Hull and Sheffield and Hull and Leeds, integrating East Yorkshire into the Northern Powerhouse Rail network

The proposal remains in draft until the completion of the public consultation, when it may be updated in response to public feedback. Should the decision be made to proceed with the devolution arrangement, the final proposal will be submitted to the Secretary of State.

Combined Authority

A combined authority is a legal body that allows a group of 2 or more councils to collaborate and make collective decisions on certain issues that cross council boundaries. When a combined authority makes a decision, the councils then put it into action in their own areas.

The 2 councils are not merging under any devolution deal. They would remain as separate authorities, and all the services we currently deliver would still be delivered by us.

Funding

A combined authority would have a board made up of representatives from both councils, balancing the power and ensuring fair allocation of funding.

If the devolution proposal is agreed, this will be just the start of a longer-term journey. Greater Manchester agreed its first devolution deal in 2014 and has increased its devolved powers and funding with each subsequent deal.

Government change

Setting up a combined authority is an act of Parliament and therefore undoing it would not be easy. Part of any deal would commit the government legally to longer-term funding provision, including a 30-year investment funding allocation. As both leading parties have also committed to the principle of devolution, any change of central government should not impact devolution.

You can find news articles on devolution and what it could mean for our area.