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MPC(24)37 Suffolk Devolution Deal

Agendas & PapersFull Council Uploaded on March 14, 2024
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MPC(24)37

Devolution Deal for Suffolk Note for Melton Parish Council

  1. In December 2022 Suffolk County Council (“SCC”) signed an in-principle agreement with the UK Government to transfer more control and funding to Suffolk. A consultation process on the proposal starts on 18/3/24.
  2. The deal should give Suffolk: –
  • Additional investment funding £16m per year x30 years (£480m)
  • Local (not central) control of existing adult education budget £9.4m per year
  • £5.8m one-off funding for development of Brownfield sites
  • £3m one-off funding to expand the greener homes 0% loans scheme
  • An integrated multi-year transport settlement
  • In total an estimated £500m additional funding over 30 years
  1. The investment fund should be used to create new jobs, invest in new technologies and drive economic growth and the development of the potential of the people of Suffolk.
  2. The transport settlement gives an additional £250k x 2years, to be spent on reducing carbon emissions and improvement of bus services.
  3. 200 plus Brownfield Sites in Suffolk could be appropriate for development. The one -off funding could be used to facilitate development schemes in conjunction with local developers and builders.
  4. Suffolk County Council’s Leader would in future be directly elected by residents (as with City Mayors in places like Manchester and Birmingham as part of their Devolution deals). Currently the political party with the most Councillors elected choses the Leader. It is not yet clear what the new post will be called, but it will not be Mayor.
  5. The presentation From SCC suggests no additional level of bureaucracy (or cost) will be created as the new post replaces an existing one. However, experience suggests that the new post will require administrative support, additional salary etc if suitable candidates are to be attracted and if the role is to have the desired impact of galvanising local development. In contrast the amounts of new investment, £500m over 30 years are relatively small. By comparison the mooted (now abandoned) Northern By-pass for Ipswich would have cost some £600m.
  6. This paper is mainly for information, but Councillors are asked to consider what comments if any we should feed into the Consultation Process.

Nigel Brown

13th March 2024