County Hall in Preston. Pic: Blog Preston Lancashire’s long-awaited devolution deal has inched closer to becoming a reality after county councillors backe
Reputational damage to Preston City Council over Guild Hall saga ‘pretty serious’Lancashire’s long-awaited devolution deal has inched closer to becoming a reality after county councillors backed the final draft of an agreement with the government.However, longstanding divisions over the subject were once again on display at County Hall, with splits between – and even within – parties over the benefits of the devolved powers that have been secured after more than seven years of trying.
However, Labour’s shadow finance cabinet member Matthew Tomlinson put forward an amendment calling for the UKSPF cash – the first allocation of which totals £55m across Lancashire – to be officially delegated to the districts within the county council area “in line with current arrangements”. However, deputy county council leader Alan Vincent warned that Labour’s proposal would mean a reopening of negotiations with Blackpool and Blackburn – and the government. That scenario, he said, would mean “there is a very good chance that misses its parliamentary slot”.
“But we want a devolution deal that works for Lancashire…and the puny proposal that you’ve put in front of us – when you had all the cards in your hand, dealing with a weak national government desperate for announcements to try and make it look stronger in Red Wall seats – … the very weakest transferral of powers,” County Cllr Lewis said.
Meanwhile, the county council’s two Green Party members came to different conclusions on the merits of the devolution deal – with group leader Gina Dowding stating that the Greens were the only party where such a divergence was allowed to be on show. Acting Labour group leader Jennifer Mein seized on the analogy often used by the top-tier leaders that Lancashire was now on “the devolution bus”, by quipping that “the bus has broken down”.
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