White Rose Brexit? YORKS DEVOLUTION TALKS

has been hijacked by Conservative MPs who wanted rural north and east Yorkshire to be included. Those areas have very different priorities to the urban Leeds City Region. The West Yorkshire councils were also unhappy about demands to have an elected mayor but have apparently given up that fight in a bid to get devolution moving.

Chairman of the West Yorkshire Combined Authority, Clr Peter Box, has said he wants to see a “White Rose Brexit” as soon as possible and is piling pressure back on the government to get on with it. He claims everyone in Yorkshire would be £600 better off each year, there would be 47,000 new jobs working in 35,000 additional modern businesses and 53,000 people would be able to come off benefits.

Clr Box says that Yorkshire’s businesses, universities, public and politicians from all political hues are calling on the government to put aside considerations of political advantage and come to the table for a constructive discussion on devolution.

He said: “We, as West Yorkshire’s council leaders, share the frustrations of business, of partners and the public that a devolution deal has been blocked repeatedly, meaning decisions that affect our region are still not taken locally.

“We felt we had a mayoral deal for the Leeds City Region over a year ago. But, for whatever reason, this is still to be agreed by government.

“Yorkshire represents one third of all Northern Powerhouse output and an economy bigger than nine EU countries and yet we could be so much more.“