(Image: Supplied)
The mayor of York and North Yorkshire has welcomed the government announcing more money and powers for local leaders to help drive growth.
At the budget, the chancellor is expected to announce the new powers which the prime minister said will end local leaders “going cap in hand to Westminster”.
The government said the plans will reduce reliance on “fragmented bidding pots hosted in Whitehall”, with an initial £285 million in transitional seed funding being allocated next year to support mayors and local leaders across England.
Mayors will also work with the government to design a new £1.5 billion borrowing facility from 2028.
Andy Burnham said: “When I became prime minister, I said that if a decision can be made closer to home, it should be.
“Today we’re putting that into practice, shifting power into the hands of the people who know their communities best.”
Prime minister Andy Burnham (Image: Temilade Adelaja/Press Association)
York and North Yorkshire mayor David Skaith said the extra cash and powers will help improve the county’s bus services, build more homes, create more jobs and upgrade digital connectivity.
“Taking powers and decision-making out of Westminster and bringing them closer to the people that are most impacted by them is a fundamentally good thing,” the Labour mayor said.
“With the tools and resources to tackle the barriers that communities and business face, Good Growth Funds will help us fix our broken bus service, upgrading digital connectivity, building the right homes in the right places, and creating well-paid, skilled jobs for local people, this government is giving York and North Yorkshire the ability to drive growth in every postcode.”
Chancellor John Healey (Image: Peter Byrne/Press Association)
The government said the chancellor John Healey has “put a down payment” on the promise to devolve further powers from Whitehall.
Mr Healy said: “Local people have the right to decide their own future. Every community in Britain has potential – for too many it has gone untapped and wasted while money and power has been held in Westminster.
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“Mayors and local leaders know what their communities need to grow, which is why we are giving them more money, more power and more capacity to get projects moving, build homes and make the right decisions for their areas.
“By putting more power and funding into local hands, we can unlock growth, create opportunity and restore hope for the future.”
Housing secretary Angela Rayner (Image: Annabel Lee-Ellis/Press Association)
Housing secretary Angela Rayner added: “We’re putting a stop to mayors and local leaders being forced to come to Westminster cap in hand, asking for the power and funding that should rightfully be theirs.
“We’re backing our leaders to deliver what their communities need, from much-needed housing developments, stronger and better transport links, and the regeneration of the places people care so much about.
“That is what our devolution revolution really means – real decisions made locally, backed by real money, so every town and city can shape its own future.”