Press Centre

Press Centre

Government adopts ResPublica plans for City Devolution

14th May 2015

ResPublica has long argued that devolving powers to new and emerging city regions and combined authorities will have the capacity to change and transform their social and economic environment. We have argued that this will be essential if cities are to deliver on the twin objectives of growth and reform.

Our work over the past year built upon the central tenet that only by devolving power to City Regions will we see a rebalancing of the UK’s economy, spreading prosperity to regions left out in the cold by the focus on London and the South East:

Devo Max – Devo Manc: Place-based public services (September ’14)

Restoring Britain’s City States: Devolution, public service reform and local economic growth (February ’15)

Power, People and Places: A Manifesto for devolution to Britain’s Key Cities (May ’15)

In a groundbreaking speech in central Manchester on Thursday 14th May 2015, where a year before he set out his ambitious Northern Powerhouse vision, the Chancellor George Osbourne made it clear that this is a One Nation Government that will act in the interests of the whole country with the Metro-Mayor plans at the heart of an economic recovery for every part of the nation. In his speech, he announced that the Government’s Queen’s Speech will set out new powers.

In response to the announcement, Phillip Blond, author of ResPublica’s work on devolution and architect of the City Devolution plans, wrote in the Telegraph, and appeared on BBC News, Radio 5 Live, LBC, BBC Radio Merseyside.

It’s time to unleash the power of the North
Daily Telegraph article by Phillip Blond

A strategy of devolution for the whole of the North – not just the favoured cities – would bring the home of the industrial revolution back to life

A new, directly elected Mayor of Greater Manchester will receive the following powers:

  • Responsibility for a devolved and consolidated transport budget, with a multi-year settlement to be agreed at the next Spending Review.
  • Responsibility for franchised bus services (subject to consultation by Greater Manchester), for integrating smart ticketing across all local modes of transport, and urgently exploring the opportunities for devolving rail stations across the Greater Manchester area.
  • Powers over strategic planning, including the power to create a statutory spatial framework for Greater Manchester. This will need to be approved by a unanimous vote of the Mayor’s Cabinet.
  • Control of a new £300 million Housing Investment Fund.
  • Control of a reformed earn back deal, within the current envelope of £30 million a year for 30 years. Take on the role currently covered by the Police and Crime Commissioner.

The Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA) will receive the following powers:

  • Responsibility for devolved business support budgets, including the Growth Accelerator, Manufacturing Advice Service and UK Trade and Investment (UKTI) Export Advice.
  • Control of the Apprenticeship Grant for Employers in Greater Manchester and power to re-shape and re-structure the Further Education (FE) provision within Greater Manchester.
  • Control of an expanded Working Well pilot, with central government funding linked to good performance up to a fixed DEL limit in return for risk sharing.
  • Opportunity to be a joint commissioner with Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) for the next phase of the Work Programme.
  • GMCA and Greater Manchester Clinical Commissioning Groups will be invited to develop a business plan for the integration of health and social care across Greater Manchester, based on control of existing health and social care budgets.

Further powers may be agreed over time and included in future legislation

15.05.2015 The Times

 



Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Time limit is exhausted. Please reload CAPTCHA.

Food security, accessibility, and sustainability should be categorised as a publ...

Food security, accessibility, and sustainability should be categorised as a public good says new report by the Lifelong Education Institute   The Lifelong Education Institute’s latest report ‘Hungry to Learn: Lifelong Learning Pathways for the Agri-food Sector’ raises concerns over the neglected potential of the agri-food sector in the UK, and especially around the gap between its skills requirements and the available skills provision by agri-food education institutions....

THINK TANK CALLS FOR A BEHAVIOUR REVOLUTION IN SCHOOLS

A new report, Behaving to Learn, by the think tank ResPublica challenges the Government to be bold and drive a revolution in behaviour management across state schools to improve the outcomes for children and the lives of teachers....

New collection of essays by Conservative MPs offers fresh ideas for tackling pov...

PRESS RELEASE EMBARGOED | 24th MAY 2023 00:01 For Media Enquires please contact mike.mavrommatis@respublica.org.uk...

Playing by The Rules | Press Release

PRESS RELEASE New independent regulator needed to protect English football clubs and give working-class fans a greater voice Ahead of the much-anticipated publication of the Government White Paper on the creation of a new independent regulator for English football (IREF), think-tank ResPublica warns that it must not be an ‘owners’ and directors’ charter’ and must ensure that the game’s fans are treated as highly-valued stakeholders and given a greater voice at both club and national level....

How smart solar at scale can power UK’s economic recovery

In its latest report, ‘Smart Solar at Scale: Meeting the UK’s net-zero emissions and clean growth targets’, ResPublica argues that the energy sector can play a central role in powering the UK’s economic recovery, post-Covid-19....

Press Release
  • Comments Off on ResPublica Report | Size doesn’t matter, small places must not be left behind in the devolution process.
ResPublica Report | Size doesn’t matter, small places must not be left behind...

The Government’s focus on metro-regions has meant that mid-sized cities, towns, districts, and counties have been locked-out of the devolution process....

Phillip Blond on LBC with Shelagh Fogarty

Listen to Shelagh Fogart from LBC, interviewing ResPublica’s Director, Phillip Blond, on the need to reform NHS Services....

Press Release
  • Comments Off on ResPublica Report | How to improve the Health and Wellbeing of the UK population
ResPublica Report | How to improve the Health and Wellbeing of the UK population

A new report launched today by the independent think tank ResPublica, set out how we can properly refigure our public health system in the light of its successes and failings in the Covid-19 epidemic....

Press Release
Election pledges will not meet the UK’s future skill needs

The next Government must unleash the potential of the UK’s workforce to compete in the 21st century economy.  ...