Minister has yet to meet key leaders for talks to end devolution deadlock
THE LOCAL Government Secretary has still not met South Yorkshire council leaders or the region’s mayor to plot a way through the devolution deadlock gripping the region, a peer has revealed.
Former Sheffield City Council leader Lord Scriven said the Cabinet Minister James Brokenshire has still not discussed stalled devolution plans with Sheffield City Region (SCR) Mayor Dan Jarvis or the four local authority leaders in South Yorkshire.
The SCR has been left with little power or money as Barnsley and Doncaster would rather take part in a wider One Yorkshire devolution deal, which is also backed by Mr Jarvis alongside a cross-party group of 16 other council leaders from across the region.
The leaders last month submitted detailed documentation on the economic case for a One Yorkshire deal but Local Government Minister Lord Bourne yesterday said: “Nothing can happen in relation to broader Yorkshire until the Sheffield deal moves forward.” It came after Lord Scriven asked:
“Could I ask the Minister when the Secretary of State will meet with the four leaders and the elected Mayor of the Sheffield City Region as he hasn’t done so since he became the Secretary of State six months ago? And if the leaders can’t find a way forward in this stalemate will a timescale be put on before the deal is withdrawn?”