Yorkshire needs own assembly like Scotland

(Marge

IN May of next year, the people of West Yorkshire will have the opportunity to vote for their first ever directly elected mayor.

A “devolution” deal has been agreed, which will see some powers and funds returned to West Yorkshire from central government, on condition that these are managed by a directly elected mayor.

I say, “returned” because until March 31 1986, there was a democratically elected West Yorkshire County Council.

However, this was abolished by the then Tory government under Thatcher, along with neighbouring South Yorkshire County Council and others.

And why? For purely political envy.

Whilst some responsibilities were devolved to the district councils, others were starved of cash, and some, buses and trains in particular, were privatised.

This new devolution deal stops short of creating a truly democratic council for West Yorkshire but is, of course, a foundation for future progress. And in the deal is limited funding for, “collaboration at a Yorkshire level”.

What is clear is that Yorkshire, with a population of around five million – roughly the same as Scotland – needs its own democratically elected assembly or even parliament.

Whilst the new mayor will have much other work to do, not least putting right our broken public transport system; it is essential that they also have a commitment to the ultimate abolition of their own role of mayor, and its replacement by a democratically elected Yorkshire assembly.

Country’s greatest crisis is now solved

THANK goodness the country’s greatest crisis since Suez in 1956 has been solved - with the BBC now allowing some limited singing at the Last Night of the Proms.

The simple fact of the matter is choirs are still not allowed to do public performances in line with Covid-19 guidelines, but there is of course nothing like a few dog whistles when there is a need to distract attention from the calamitous performance of the Government.