In less than two years, Sussex will have a Mayor – but what does that mean and why does it matter?
Karen Dunn at the BBC-funded Local Democracy Reporting Service has issued a very helpful ‘Explainer’ that talks us through what is a very significant development and what is going to happen.
We can probably assume that, over the past year or so, most people are likely to have heard and read news reports about the two major changes impending: devolution and local government reorganisation.
The Explainer tells us that the first step is for both county councils and all district and borough councils in Sussex to be dissolved and replaced with a number of unitary authorities.
After that comes devolution; that is the passing down of certain powers and responsibilities from government to local regions. And that’s where the Mayor comes in.
Sussex & Brighton Strategic Authority
In preparation for devolution, a Sussex & Brighton Strategic Authority was set up in April this year. The Mayor will be the head of this and is due to be elected by popular vote in 2028.
Before s/he arrives, the way is being paved by a six-strong Strategic Authority Board made up of the leaders of West Sussex County Council, East Sussex County Council, and Brighton & Hove City Council, along with one other councillor each.
Once the Mayor is elected, s/he will become chair of this Board but, until then, the other six are taking turns to chair. Bella Sankey, leader of Brighton & Hove City Council will go first.
Treasury documents suggest that Sussex stands to benefit from £117m in extra funding, allocated to the new Authority over the next four years, part of a £1.1 billion pot intended to cover the next 30 years.
As to the division of power and responsibility, the new unitary authorities will undertake the services that are currently the purview of the existing councils while the Strategic Authority will look at the bigger decisions and, at the same time, work to attract investment and funding to the county.
Nine areas of responsibility
Looking at this more closely, the Strategic Authority will have nine areas of responsibility: transport and local infrastructure; skills and employment support; housing and strategic planning; economic development and regeneration; the environment and climate change; health, well-being and public service reform; public safety; culture; and rural affairs and coastal communities. These are all essentially strategic responsibilities which are believed to be more effectively controlled regionally, by people with local knowledge.
The obvious question now is how influential can mayors be? Andy Burnham is usually put up as an exemplar. He has made his name as the Mayor of Greater Manchester, where he oversaw a number of significant changes since getting elected in 2017, most notably an integrated public transport system bringing buses, trams and local rail services together under greater public control. He also successfully promoted economic growth and regeneration, prioritised tackling homelessness, and advocated for better health and social care integration.
It is opportunities like these, someone pushing for the region at the highest levels of government and securing investment for badly needed infrastructure projects, that make these new institutions potentially very exciting.
The West Midlands Combined Authority is another interesting exemplar. Founded in 2016, its work has included bringing five railway stations and new tramlines to the area, its Mayor fighting for funding and investment along the way.
The voice of the region
In Sussex, the new Mayor will no doubt bring their own views and priorities to the table but he or she will not have overall control. The Mayor will be the voice of the region, working with local leaders and lobbying government for what is needed, but the board will have to agree any decisions.
Some things are still undecided. It’s not yet known how many staff the Strategic Authority will have though it’s likely to be a few hundred. They will be managed by a Chief Executive Officer and an interim CEO is already in place.
It’s also not known where the Authority will be based. But things such as board meetings, scrutiny meetings and audit meetings will be moved around the three parts of the county to ensure as many people as possible have the chance to see what’s going on. The next board meeting will be held on July 29, location still to be confirmed.
If you want to know more about this and keep up as the changes roll out, check out Sussex And The City, an independent and non-political project, reporting on the reorganisations. The purpose is “to build a collective vision of what matters to Sussex, and what a new elected mayor can build on to ensure the whole region flourishes”.
CLICK HERE TO DONATE TO OUR CROWDFUNDER
HELP US BECOME STRONGER SO THAT WE CAN CONTINUE TO DELIVER POWERFUL CITIZEN JOURNALISM!
