Regional assembly demand is rebuffed

CALLS FOR Yorkshire to get its own London-style decision-making assembly were made at a summit of politicians and business leaders in Leeds.

While a government Minister suggested such a bold move would be unlikely, the suggestion was made that greater powers over regional transport could be passed down from central government in future.

The comments came at the One Yorkshire Devolution Conference in Leeds, where the Government’s Northern Powerhouse minister Jake Berry was discussing potential devolution deals for the region.

Former Green Party leader Natalie Bennett said: “I know there are people here who have come from very different political places in Yorkshire.

“How can we have the idea of one person representing the whole of Yorkshire? Surely we need a proportional representation assembly that represents all of the people with real power and resources to make decisions.” The Yorkshire Party’s leader, Stewart Arnold, also asked whether London could be seen as a model for devolution in Yorkshire.

Responding to the suggestions, Mr Berry said a Londonstyle assembly would be unrealistic, as: “London is different.”

He added that the capital’s decision-making body was “much longerestablished, and it has some significant extra powers, particularly in the area of transport.

“I don’t think devolution is quite there at the moment.” While London has 32 separate local authorities, strategic decisions around transport and infrastructure are made by the London Assembly, which is made up of 25 members elected using a proportional representation voting system.