Levelling Up Secretary Greg Clark will today sign a deal to grant more power to communities in Yorkshire
A historic devolution deal putting greater power into the hands of local communities in Yorkshire will be signed today by the Levelling Up Secretary Greg Clark. This historic moment comes as the county celebrates Yorkshire Day.
DLUHC is delivering this significant deal which will create a new combined authority across the region with a directly elected mayor enabling local leaders to better address specific needs within the region.
The mayor will have powers to invest in transport, housing, and education, and will be handed £540million by government over the next 30 years.
The devolution deal means that over half a billion pounds will be transferred from central government to York and North Yorkshire to be invested according to local priorities.
York and North Yorkshire is the first city and rural region to see devolution on the scale enjoyed by the core city regions including South and West Yorkshire.
Levelling Up Secretary Greg Clark MP said:
The mayor will be supported by the transfer of key powers and investment from Whitehall to make the deal a reality. Key features include:
Chief Secretary to the Treasury, Simon Clarke said:
The deal is the first of 13 devolution negotiations named in the Levelling Up White Paper to come to fruition. These places will benefit from the improved local leadership, continued investment, and better connectivity of local services that devolution unlocks.
Devolution deals come in addition to other Government levelling up measures in Yorkshire.
North Yorkshire County Council’s leader, Cllr Carl Les, said:
Leader of City of York Council, Cllr Keith Aspden said:
The government is already investing over £392m through 16 Town Deals to help regenerate towns across Yorkshire and over £68m to renew and reshape Yorkshire’s town centres and high streets, including Barnsley, Halifax and Northallerton.
Ten areas are benefitting from a £187m investment from the Levelling Up Fund across Yorkshire, and over £169m is also being invested in Yorkshire through the UK Shared Prosperity Fund to build pride in place and spread equal opportunities.
Levelling Up Secretary Greg Clark is due to sign the deal alongside the leaders of North Yorkshire County Council and the City of York today.