Agenda item

English Devolution White Paper

Meeting of Cabinet, Thursday, 9th January, 2025 2.00 pm (Item 83.)

To follow

Minutes:

Amanda Beer, Chief Executive Officer, David Whittle, Director of Strategy, Policy, Relationships & Corporate Assurance and Ben Watts, General Counsel were in attendance for this item

The Leader introduced the report which detailed the Government’s proposal to establish a Devolution Priority Programme and the rationale for Kent County Council’s consideration as to:

(a) whether to request for Kent and Medway to be included in the Devolution Priority Programme; and

(b) Given (a) above and the Government programme and timetable, whether to request the Minister to consider postponement of the County Council elections scheduled for May 2025

It was noted that at the time of the report publication, no recommendation had been included. Given the wider implications of being accepted on the programme, it had been important to gather views of the wider Council membership via the extraordinary County Council meeting held in the morning so that any decision taken by Cabinet on this matter would be well informed. Having listened carefully to the full debate at County Council and noting the resolution of Council to endorse an application to join the Devolution Priority Programme and request a postponement of the KCC Elections, the Leader put forward the motion that Cabinet consider the following proposal to:

(a) Agree to submit a request to government jointly with Medway Council for Kent and Medway to be included in the Devolution Priority Programme; and

(b) Agree to request that the Minister for Local Government and English Devolution consider postponing county elections scheduled for May 2025.

The following comments were put forward by Cabinet:

· Members acknowledged the extensive debate held at Full Council

· The remnants of the current Local Government structures had been created as part of the 1972 Local Government Act, which led to significant reforms in 1974. The issue therefore of making local government more efficient had been a perennial question for a number of years and one which was finally being addressed through the Government’s Devolution Priority Programme.

· Members noted that the Mayoral Strategic Authorities (MSA) would strengthen the Council’s ability to act as a strategic authority and acknowledged the strong theme of public service reform through the Government’s proposals. However, key information that was not included as part of the Government’s English Devolution White paper related to Local Authority debt and how this would be managed as part of any transition to new Council arrangements.

· Cabinet Members, while recognising the challenges and democratic gap involved with postponing the elections, supported the postponement of elections to ensure that all resources were focussed on the work that would be required to create a Mayoral Strategic Authority alongside reorganisation and maintaining a business as usual approach to the current day-to-day running of the Council.

· Working in partnership with key partners and stakeholders such as Police and Crime Commissioner, Fire Authority, District and Borough Councils and Medway Council on the progression of devolution and local government reorganisation would be of paramount importance in delivering a system that worked for the people of Kent.

· Regarding Highways and Transport, the Devolution Programme would offer a unique opportunity to transform Kent’s transportation landscape into one that was more efficient, integrated and responsive to the needs of all residents across greater Kent. There was also the potential that devolution could secure a dedicated ring-fenced budget for transport, thus ensuring that every penny collected through transport related revenues would be reinvested back into improving bus services, repairing roads and making Kents transport systems more robust. Further possible benefits of the devolution programme included financial autonomy, to both plan and execute improvements where they were most needed and the ability to define key route networks that would be tailored to Kent’s specific needs, thereby reducing congestion, enhancing safety and enabling more effective traffic management. Devolution could significantly improve bus services and support the exploration of franchising to ensure better service coverage and reliability. All of which would help to boost the local economy, improving access to education, jobs and cultural activities.

· Centralising responsibilities could eliminate inconsistencies and duplications that currently existed across 12 District Councils. It would therefore help to streamline those operations and ensure that all residents, regardless of where they lived in Kent, would have access to uniform and high-quality services.

· Devolution would position Kent to have a stronger voice in land use and transport planning, and a more coherent approach to development that integrated solutions from the outset. The Devolution Programme would offer Kent the opportunity to shape its future rather than simply react. Without devolution, Kent would miss out on significant funding opportunities that could double or triple its current investment capabilities over the next few years.

· Members acknowledged that there were a significant number of ‘unknowns’ that would need to be addressed should the County Council commit and be accepted by Ministers to being part of the Devolution Priority Programme. A significant amount of work would need to be undertaken at pace to fully scope and understand what would be required to support the creation of a Mayoral Strategic Authority, including such things as the election of the Mayor, the responsibilities of the Mayoral office, costs, staffing structures, capital investments, who would lead on the programme of work, engagement with consultancy firms and general funding. The County Council and its partners would have 12 months to create a Mayoral Strategic Authority (MSA) and be in a position to hold the first elections for the Mayor by May 2026 and deliver a significant local government reorganisation by April 2027 or April 2028.

· Members commented that the establishment of a Mayoral Strategic Authority would help to support the local business sector and local economy to expand and to deliver greater progress through effective use of local strategic planning.

· It was acknowledged that whilst the Devolution Programme would present a number of risks, the risk of doing nothing and falling behind other local authority areas outweighed the risks that the Council would encounter should it be accepted onto the Devolution Priority Programme.

· Local government reform should not be viewed as a negative reflection of the services that were delivered by the current tiers of local government, nor the people that delivered those services but rather an opportunity to streamline and improve. It was noted that despite good work in the current system, public perception of two-tier systems of local government continued to be that it was unwieldy and confusing.

· Members commented on the importance of transparency with stakeholders as this would be key to progression and delivering the local government reforms

The Leader summarised the discussion and acknowledged the implications that would be inherent to embarking on the Priority Devolution Programme. He also noted that the Devolution Programme would not directly address the financial problems of the Council; in particular that, through a combination of unprecedented pressures in Adult Social Care and Children’s Services and the historic removal of local government’s strategic planning powers, a significant deficit had been created. All of which could and must be addressed through strategic leadership, which is what the Devolution Programme would provide. The Leader thanked Cabinet Members, Members of the County Council who had engaged in the debates and Medway Council with whom KCC had worked extremely closely in taking forward the Devolution Priority Programme application. Work would continue with all stakeholders, including District and Borough colleagues to ensure a timely and effective delivery of the tasks at hand. Further thanks was paid to officers who had supported the programme and the tremendous amount of work that had been done to date.

Mr Love suggested and the Leader and Cabinet agreed to the following amendment (as set out in paragraph 2) to the proposal set out by the Leader at the start of the item:

1. Agree to submit a request to Government, jointly with Medway Council, for Kent and Medway to be included in the Devolution Priority Programme

2. Note that acceptance onto the Devolution Priority Programme will commit Kent and Medway to elections to a new Mayoral Strategic Authority (MSA) in May 2026 and implementation of local government reorganisation by either April 2027 or April 2028

3. Agree to request that the Minister for Local Government and English Devolution consider postponing County elections scheduled for May 2025

Following the debate, the Leader proposed and Mr Oakford, Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Finance, Corporate and Traded Services, seconded the above motion that Cabinet.

1. Agree to submit a request to Government, jointly with Medway Council, for Kent and Medway to be included in the Devolution Priority Programme

3. Agree to request that the Minister for Local Government and English Devolution consider postponing County elections scheduled for May 2025

RESOLVED that Cabinet:

1. Agree to submit a request to Government, jointly with Medway Council, for Kent and Medway to be included in the Devolution Priority Programme;

3. Agree to request that the Minister for Local Government and English Devolution consider postponing County elections scheduled for May 2025

Supporting documents: