Issue - items at meetings - Devolution – Outcome of Consultation

The Chief Operating Officer to present a report which summarises the outcome of consultation on a Scheme for governance arrangements to implement the proposed Devolution Deal for York and North Yorkshire, identifies possible amendments to the Deal arising from the consultation, and asks Executive to recommend that Council approve the submission of a consultation summary to Government.

Recommended: (i) That Council approve the submission of a Consultation Summary Report to the Government.

Reason: To inform the Secretary of State of the consultation outcome, allowing him to consider the next stages of the statutory process facilitating the creation of a York and North Yorkshire Combined Authority.

(ii) That Council approve Amendments to the Scheme and proposals for the operating model of the Combined Authority outlined in paragraph 92 of the report, for submission to Government.

Reason: To utilise the information received during the consultation to improve the proposed governance arrangements.

(iii) That Council delegate authority to the Chief Operating Officer, in consultation with the Leader of the Council, to undertake any action necessary to submit the Consultation Summary Report and Scheme to Government, in line with recommendations (i) and (ii) above.

Reason: To facilitate the submission of the required documents to Government within the required timescales.

(iv) That Council approve Amendments to the Terms of Reference for the York and North Yorkshire Joint Devolution Committee outlined in paragraphs 103-107 of the report and attached at Annex 2.

Reason: To ensure appropriate, robust and transparent decision-making.

(iii) That Council delegate authority to the Chief Operating Officer, in consultation with the Leader of the Council, to undertake any action necessary to provide consent to the Order facilitating the creation of the Combined Authority in line with the scheme submitted to Government, as outlined in paragraph 115 of the report.

Reason: To allow the progress of the statutory process facilitating the creation of the Combined Authority.

The Chief Operating Officer and the Head of Corporate Policy & City Partnerships presented a report which summarised the outcome of consultation on a Scheme for governance arrangements to implement the proposed Devolution Deal for York and North Yorkshire, suggested amendments to the Deal arising from the consultation, and asked Executive to recommend that Council approve the submission of a consultation summary to Government. North Yorkshire County Council was considering the same matters, as the approval of both councils was needed to progress the statutory process.

Details of the consultation were set out in Annex 1 to the report and summarised in paragraphs 10-92, including suggested amendments to take on board the comments received. The overall response had been positive, with 54% supporting the proposals and 32% opposing them. Three options were presented, as set out in paragraphs 93-101:

Option 1 – submit the consultation summary and Scheme to government without amendment. Not recommended, as the suggested amendments would improve the model of governance.

Option 2 – decide not to submit the summary and Scheme. Not recommended, as the consultation had been robust and the issues raised could be addressed satisfactorily.

Option 3 – amend the Scheme based on information received and submit it to government with the summary, as recommended.

In supporting the recommendations, the Executive Member for Environment & Climate Change highlighted the greater autonomy and access to funding that devolution would bring, while noting the importance of consultation amid concerns around the power of the mayor. The Chair also welcomed the proposals and the significant benefits that devolution would bring to the city. Having noted the comments made under Public Participation on this item, it was