Cheshire East in 'positive talks' over devolution with UK government minister
Cheshire East Council has held 'positive' talks with the new Labour UK government over devolution.
The new Labour government could devolve new powers over transport, skills, housing, planning and employment support to Cheshire East Council and two neighbouring councils, being Chester and Cheshire West and Warrington.
It is part of Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner's 'devolution revolution', announced days after Labour came into power in July.
Council leaders in Cheshire & Warrington have issued the following joint statement:
"[On] Tuesday September 3, a positive meeting took place with the Minister for Local Government and English Devolution, Jim McMahon," said the statement co-authored by the three local authorities.
"The purpose of the meeting with the minister, attended by representatives from Cheshire East, Cheshire West and Chester and Warrington councils, alongside Enterprise Cheshire and Warrington, was to open discussions about a devolution agreement for the Cheshire & Warrington region.
"A successful devolution agreement would allow us to make more decisions in Cheshire & Warrington, rather than decisions about our region and its almost one million residents being made in London.
"Cheshire & Warrington has a strong track record of partnership working over many years with shared ambitions across a number of priority areas including: driving sustainable economic growth and jobs (promoting our crucial life sciences, manufacturing and agricultural sectors); constructing the right houses in the right places; building an integrated transport system that works for residents and businesses; reducing health inequalities; working with employers to deliver skills and training; achieving industrial decarbonisation and promoting workable solutions to the energy crisis.
"Our three councils have been working successfully together for many years with a shared vision to be the healthiest, most sustainable, inclusive and growing economy in the UK. The right devolution agreement could allow us to build on this great work.
"Devolution is about national government transferring powers and resources to local government. It is not about merging councils. Individual councils would retain their current responsibilities and continue to deliver services for local people.
"The meeting with the minister was very positive, and it is clear that the government wants to consider what a co-produced devolution agreement could look like for Cheshire & Warrington. We will now begin these discussions in more detail, with the aim of moving towards an accelerated agreement with government.
"Any potential devolution agreement would need to be right for our region and its residents and businesses, and informed by the views of our residents, businesses and communities."
But not everyone has been positive over devolution talks.
Macclesfield resident Martin Smith, who has started a petition for Macclesfield and Tatton to break away from Cheshire East Council and form their own authority, has produced a poster accepting the deal, but without Macclesfield's presence.
"We run the risk of being sold down the river folks, we need to fight our corner on this one," he wrote on Facebook.
Mr Smith's petition for Macclesfield and the surrounding area to break away from Cheshire East Council has almost 3000 signatures. A Facebook group also has 341 members.
Cheshire East Council's Conservative Group leader recently raised concerns over the fast speed of devolution, and warned that the days of excellent 'devo deals' were gone.
*(Image - CC 3.0 Unported Unchanged Chris McAndrew Unchanged https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Official_portrait_of_Jim_McMahon_crop_2.jpg#/media/File:Official_portrait_of_Jim_McMahon_crop_1.jpg)
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