North East Mayor and Government: Council leaders set to sign £1bn deal

Over the past 20 years, under the control of governments of all colours, an unhealthy economic gap has been created between the north and south of our country.

Sue Jeffrey, chair of the Shadow Tees Valley Combined Authority and leader of Redcar and Cleveland Borough Council, said: “I’m pleased that the government has put a devolution deal on the table and if it is agreed by all the Tees Valley councils, there is no doubt it will enable us to do more locally to strengthen our economy and secure a more sustainable future for the Tees Valley”.

Under proposed agreements announced on Friday (October 23), from May 2017 the north and south of the region would get directly elected mayors with powers over economic development and skills, transport, planning and housing, plus a combined £1.35bn over 30 years to fund new borrowing and investment.

In response to the announcements, Alexandra Jones, chief executive of think tank Centre for Cities, said investment funds included in these deals will enable local leaders to undertake “ambitious” infrastructure projects that will better connect people to jobs, and businesses to customers.

Devolution deals underline the government’s commitment to building a Northern Powerhouse to help rebalance the economy and ending the old model of running everything out of London.

“Over the coming months we will be speaking to local residents and businesses about what the proposals mean for them”.

 The creation of an Employment and Skills Board to manage an overhaul of post-16 skills training and employment support in order to get more people into work, increase productivity, improve the life chances of young people and address the skill shortages experienced by North East employers.

Cllr Simon Henig, chairman of the North East Combined Authority, said: “Reaching a deal takes time, but leaders have all agreed to move forward to the next stage of negotiations and are all determined to reach an agreement that is good for the North East”.

It will see the establishment of a Commission for Health and Social Care Integration. “The new powers and resources must be deployed in a way that adds to the wealth and prosperity of the region”.

On behalf of all regions NHS clinical commissioning groups (CCGs), the North East and Cumbria CCG Forum welcomed the opportunity to explore improvements for the regional health outcomes and inequalities through tighter integration and collaboration across the area.

Final agreement remains subject to the Government’s spending review and the legislative process and is also conditional upon further public consultation and the agreement of the seven local councils which make up the combined authority.

The deal itself is worth £450m over 30 years, meaning the region will receive £15m per year.

This Mayor will oversee a whole host of powers from transport budgets to skills funding.

Chancellor George Osborne hailed the “historic” deals with the North East Combined Authority, which takes in councils including Newcastle and Sunderland, and Tees Valley.

Following the Government’s confirmation that The North East and the Tees Valley will both receive extra powers in return for having a directly-elected mayor, we bring you a roundup of reactions to the devolution deals from across the region.

“Unless the north-east accepts an elected mayor, no devolution will take place”, he claimed.