Voices of the Future: Will West Yorkshire devolution bring back voters’ confidence?

In this week’s column, YEP Voices of the Future columnist Nicholas Budgen looks at how devolution may level up the Northern economy.
Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak. Picture: LEON NEAL/POOL/AFP via Getty ImagesChancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak. Picture: LEON NEAL/POOL/AFP via Getty Images
Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak. Picture: LEON NEAL/POOL/AFP via Getty Images

The influence of the new inflow of Northern Tory MPs on the government is obvious. From much-touted investment projects to talk of mammoth economic decentralisation, the headlines demonstrate a new-found keenness to reboot the so-called ‘Northern Powerhouse’.

The government’s strategy was inconsequential. Northerners got a few grants for housing projects, yet more infighting on HS2, and a few half-hearted visits to factories for good measure. We got little to meaningfully ‘level-up’ the country.

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Yorkshire’s vote to leave the EU in 2016 was an expression of voters’ desire for change. Successive governments have far too long been more concerned with grabbing the right headlines, than about meaningfully addressing the region’s most pressing issues.

Things have changed since. At last year’s election, the Tories campaigned extensively across the North, with ministers touting the party’s commitment to “level-up” the country.

Such rhetoric paid off; the Tories enjoyed a thumping majority, winning 365 seats, largely thanks to gains in leave seats in Yorkshire and the North East, which proved sympathetic to the PM’s ‘Get Brexit done’ slogan.

The sloganeering was effective at reaching new voters, but the policy has so far remained unclear.

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That has changed some-what. Leaders from the West Riding’s five councils met with Chancellor Sunak to discuss the government’s plans for boosting investment in the region that has some of the highest rates of deprivation in England.

This deal, costing £1.8 billion, will oversee a seismic transfer of power from Whitehall to Yorkshire. Its most impressive measure is an investment of £38 million a year into the West Yorkshire Investment Fund - notable in that elected authorities will enjoy tremendous freedom over how it is spent, though the Combined Authority will likely prioritise housing and public transport.

The agreement aims to address voters’ disillusionment with Westminster with a directly elected mayor, with voting in May next year. Yet, addressing residents’ distrust will require more than greater local powers. While Leeds grew to become a major economic centre, voters’ confidence in Whitehall diminished. This is evident in the poor turnout at elections; Leeds Central had one of the lowest turnouts in the country, at just over 54 per cent. The West Yorkshire Devolution Deal aims to ensure transparency by requiring the Mayor to release an annual economic growth report. This should give businesses peace of mind, by allowing voters to scrutinise spending decisions. An agreement bold in ambition and the precedent it sets.

West Yorkshire’s economy will benefit enormously from greater investment in transport and greater local control will revive residents’ confidence in local government. Council leaders have signaled a rejuvenated faith in regional devolution. Whether voters will take much notice remains to be seen.

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