To be moved by Councillor Brendan Stubbs

Seconded by Councillor Geoff Reid

Council Notes

1.    That many English regions across the country are benefiting from devolution deals.

2.    Despite the benefits of devolution, the current model of city regions, LEPS and combined authorities are lacking in democratic accountability.

3.    That the concentration of political power in the hands of a single directly elected Mayor is not as democratic as a proportionally elected body.

4.    The population and GDP of Yorkshire is roughly equivalent to that of Scotland.

Furthermore, Council believes that:

5.    Yorkshire forms a single recognisable region, with a common culture, dialect, and identity which is one of the strongest in the UK.

6.    Power should be devolved as far as possible with decisions that affect residents being made by Local Government.

Therefore, Council calls for:

7.    A regional devolution deal for Yorkshire consisting of a single directly elected parliament

8.    Election to the Yorkshire Parliament to be by single transferable vote method in multi-member constituencies.

9.    Powers devolved to Yorkshire to be equivalent to those devolved to the Scottish Parliament.

10.  The powers and funding of regional and sub-regional quangos to be subsumed into the Yorkshire Parliament.

11.  Abolition of the offices of Police and Crime Commissioners for the Yorkshire Police forces, with policing powers returned to democratically accountable local Police and Crime panels.

12. The leader of the Council to write to The Right Honourable James Brokenshire MP Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government and Jake Berry MP Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for the Northern Powerhouse and Local Growth expressing this Council’s view on Yorkshire wide devolution.

Resolved –

Council notes:

·        That devolution would lead to more powers and money to grow our local economy.

·        That a proposal for a One Yorkshire devolution deal has now been submitted to Government with a full economic case for devolution to the region.  Government has previously rejected other proposed devolution deals including Leeds City Region.

·        That the One Yorkshire devolution proposal is signed up to by 18 local authority leaders across party lines and across the region.  It also has strong backing from some Yorkshire MPs and from the Archbishop of York.

·        That a number of English city regions across the country are benefiting from devolution deals, as well as the devolved nations of Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales.

·        The population of Yorkshire is roughly equivalent to that of Scotland however Scotland has seen much greater levels of devolution over the past two decades compared to Yorkshire. 

·        Yorkshire forms a single recognisable economically coherent region, with a common culture, dialect, and identity which is one of the strongest in the UK.

·         Powers should be devolved as far as possible with decisions that affect residents being made by Local Government and even neighbourhood level where that is possible.

This Council calls for:

1.    A regional devolution deal for Yorkshire consisting of a single directly elected mayor acting with a cabinet made up of elected members from each local authority across Yorkshire. Both sub regional, thematic and sectoral sub-committees to be made up of business, civic, third sector and elected members.

2.    Election of the directly elected mayor to be by supplementary voting method as per the existing Mayoral legislation already laid down in the House of Commons.

3.    The principle of subsidiarity to be followed when determining at what level decisions of resource allocation to be made.  We aspire to the powers devolved to Yorkshire being equivalent to those devolved to the Scottish Parliament, this to be achieved with Government’s consent over time.

4.    The powers and funding of regional and sub-regional bodies to be subsumed into the One Yorkshire framework over time.

5.    Above all, a constructive conversation regarding devolution with the Government at the earliest opportunity would be welcomed.

ACTION:        Chief Executive

A motion was moved by Councillor Stubbs.

An amendment, as set out in the resolution below, moved by Councillor Hinchcliffe was carried.

Resolved –

Council notes:

·        That devolution would lead to more powers and money to grow our local economy.

·        That a proposal for a One Yorkshire devolution deal has now been submitted to Government with a full economic case for devolution to the region.  Government has previously rejected other proposed devolution deals including Leeds City Region.

·        That the One Yorkshire devolution proposal is signed up to by 18 local authority leaders across party lines and across the region.  It also has strong backing from some Yorkshire MPs and from the Archbishop of York.

·        That a number of English city regions across the country are benefiting from devolution deals, as well as the devolved nations of Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales.

·        The population of Yorkshire is roughly equivalent to that of Scotland however Scotland has seen much greater levels of devolution over the past two decades compared to Yorkshire. 

·        Yorkshire forms a single recognisable economically coherent region, with a common culture, dialect, and identity which is one of the strongest in the UK.

·         Powers should be devolved as far as possible with decisions that affect residents being made by Local Government and even neighbourhood level where that is possible.

This Council calls for:

1.    A regional devolution deal for Yorkshire consisting of a single directly elected mayor acting with a cabinet made up of elected members from each local authority across Yorkshire. Both sub regional, thematic and sectoral sub-committees to be made up of business, civic, third sector and elected members.

2.    Election of the directly elected mayor to be by supplementary voting method as per the existing Mayoral legislation already laid down in the House of Commons.

3.    The principle of subsidiarity to be followed when determining at what level decisions of resource allocation to be made.  We aspire to the powers devolved to Yorkshire being equivalent to those devolved to the Scottish Parliament, this to be achieved with Government’s consent over time.

4.    The powers and funding of regional and sub-regional bodies to be subsumed into the One Yorkshire framework over time.

5.    Above all, a constructive conversation regarding devolution with the Government at the earliest opportunity would be welcomed.

ACTION:        Chief Executive