Source · Select Committees · Housing, Communities and Local Government Committee
Recommendation 3
3
Paragraph: 35
To embed devolution at the heart of central government the new Secretary of State for...
Conclusion
To embed devolution at the heart of central government the new Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities should be responsible for vigorously driving forward English devolution and this should be explicitly stated as one of his responsibilities. Our predecessor committee’s recommendation of permitting local authorities to report on their interactions with different government departments in the annual report on devolution should be adopted to drive a culture of positive and proactive support across the whole of Whitehall for devolution. Furthermore, a council of all areas with devolution deals should be established and hold meetings at least twice a year with the Prime Minister.
Paragraph Reference:
35
Government Response
Acknowledged
HM Government
Acknowledged
To put spatial considerations at the centre of the Government’s decision making, a new Levelling Up Cabinet Committee has recently been established. This is tasked with embedding levelling up across central government policy design and delivery. The committee will also work directly with local leaders to improve the clarity, consistency and coordination of policy. The new Cabinet Committee is chaired by the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities and among its four key missions is to drive forward the new framework for devolution, by empowering local leaders and communities and improving accountability mechanisms. Government believes that devolution should be made accessible to all, and not just areas that are large cities. Last year the Prime Minister set out the Government’s intention to take a flexible approach to devolution, so that local leaders in our historic towns and counties are given the tools to make things happen for their communities. The Government has announced County Deals to ensure county areas are able to reap the benefits of devolution. They will offer the rest of England similar powers as metro mayors over things such as, transport, skills and economic support and allow communities to come together and feel pride for the place they live. The Secretary of State has laid five annual reports on devolution dating back to 2016 before both Houses of Parliament under Section 1 of the Cities and Local Government Devolution Act 2016. The reports contain the significant financial resources provided to the mayoral combined authorities by different government department across Whitehall in each financial year. This financial support is paid to mayoral combined authorities to enable them to deliver for their residents, highlighting the Government’s continued support for the metro mayors and devolution deal agreements. The Government does not intend to ask all local areas to report on all their interactions with government departments, however, existing devolution deal areas are already part of the M10 group, which includes the Greater London Authority and the nine mayoral combined authorities. Both Mayors and their officers engage with government ministers and officials regularly.