News

22.08.16

West of England devolution model backed by just half of surveyed public

Just half of those surveyed about the planned West of England devolution deal agree that establishing a West of England Mayoral Combined Authority (MCA) would benefit the region, the results of a month-long public consultation exercise revealed.

The consultation, which received 2,011 responses, confirmed just 55% of participants said that, on balance, a MCA would be the best way forward. But 34% did not agree with this model, while 9% said they did not know and 2% did not answer.

The engagement exercise saw respondents submitting answers online, on paper and, in some cases, directly to government. Information and surveys were made available through public buildings such as local libraries and Citizen Service Points, as well as via parish councils, community facilities and drop-in events.

The £1bn deal, first unveiled during this year’s Spring Budget by former chancellor George Osborne, is based in the south west, namely including Bath & North East Somerset, Bristol and South Gloucestershire.

Last month, the councils in this catchment voted in favour of putting the deal forward for public consultation, with Bristol mayor Marvin Rees arguing the package has “the potential to unblock a billion pounds of funding across crucial areas such as housing, transport and skills”.

“It brings us closer to a second or third deal too – ones where we can negotiate more ambitious terms that meet even more of Bristol’s needs,” he said at the time.

If the proposed model gets the green light, the MCA would be established in the first part of 2017, with elections for the position of mayor to take place across all three local government areas in May, as with other devolved areas.

With the consultation now over, the three councils will submit a joint consultation to communities secretary Sajid Javid MP, who will review the findings alongside the Strategic Governance Review, the proposed Governance Scheme and any other representations that have been made directly.

If Javid determines that the deal should go ahead, each council will be asked to endorsed his decision around October. At that time, the three local authorities “independently will come to a balanced view about what will be best for their areas”.

When announced in the Budget, the devo deal proposed a devolved transport budget, including £5m to improve resilience on the Dawlish rail line, and powers over adult skills. Another £19m gained from stamp duty receipts would be sent to community-led housing schemes in areas where the impact of holiday homes is most acute.

Comments

There are no comments. Why not be the first?

Add your comment

related

public sector executive tv

more videos >

latest news

View all News

comment

Peter Kyle MP: It’s time to say thank you this Public Service Day

21/06/2019Peter Kyle MP: It’s time to say thank you this Public Service Day

Taking time to say thank you is one of the hidden pillars of a society. Bei... more >
How community-led initiatives can help save the housing shortage

19/06/2019How community-led initiatives can help save the housing shortage

Tom Chance, director at the National Community Land Trust Network, argues t... more >

editor's comment

25/10/2017Take a moment to celebrate

Devolution, restructuring and widespread service reform: from a journalist’s perspective, it’s never been a more exciting time to report on the public sector. That’s why I could not be more thrilled to be taking over the reins at PSE at this key juncture. There could not be a feature that more perfectly encapsulates this feeling of imminent change than the article James Palmer, mayor of Cambridgeshire and Peterborough, has penned for us on p28. In it, he highlights... read more >

last word

Prevention: Investing for the future

Prevention: Investing for the future

Rob Whiteman, CEO at the Chartered Institute of Public Finance (CIPFA), discusses the benefits of long-term preventative investment. Rising demand, reducing resource – this has been the r more > more last word articles >

interviews

Artificial intelligence: the devil is in the data

17/12/2018Artificial intelligence: the devil is in the data

It’s no secret that the public sector and its service providers need ... more >

the raven's daily blog

Cleaner, greener, safer media: Increased ROI, decreased carbon

23/06/2020Cleaner, greener, safer media: Increased ROI, decreased carbon

Evolution is crucial in any business and Public Sector Executive is no different. Long before Covid-19 even became a thought in the back of our minds, the team at PS... more >
read more blog posts from 'the raven' >

public sector events

events calendar

back

August 2020

forward
mon tue wed thu fri sat sun
27 28 29 30 31 1 2
3 4 5 6 7 8 9
10 11 12 13 14 15 16
17 18 19 20 21 22 23
24 25 26 27 28 29 30
31 1 2 3 4 5 6

featured articles

View all News