The government may have postponed the election of the first mayor of Sussex for two years but councillors in Brighton and Hove are taking the next steps locally to prepare the ground.
This includes setting up a new Sussex and Brighton Combined County Authority (SBCCA) which will work alongside the elected mayor.
Brighton and Hove City Council’s cabinet members are expected to give their support next week to the formal process.
The cabinet is also expected to give the council’s chief executive Jess Gibbons the authority to liaise with the government over the new combined authority.
Although the mayoral election has been put off until May 2028, the combined authority is expected to be up and running in the spring.
An interim chief officer for the shadow combined authority was appointed in October. Mark Rogers, has extensive experience, having worked on setting up similar local authorities in the West Midlands, East Midlands, Hull and East Yorkshire.
Work is already under way to appoint the staff to deliver the mayoral programme and work alongside existing councils.
The elected mayor will have executive or policy-making power, unlike the ceremonial mayor of Brighton and Hove who has a ceremonial role.
Once it is up and running, the combined authority would be expected to drive growth and shape public services, with the mayor taking responsibility for
- Transport and local infrastructure
- Skills and employment support
- Housing and strategic planning
- Economic development and regeneration
- Environment and climate change
- Health, wellbeing and public service reform
- Public safety
Once voted in, decisions will be made by the mayor alongside the leaders of the county’s unitary authorities which are due to be in place by April 2028.
The government has just finished consulting the public on how Sussex will be divided into unitary authorities, with four options on the table. These propose three, four or five unitary councils.
They will replace a largely two-tier system, including the two county councils and 12 district councils. Brighton and Hove City Council is the currently only unitary council in the whole of Sussex.
The council’s cabinet is also being asked to agree to a proposed two-year “memorandum of understanding” (MOU) for the financial contributions for the combined authority.
Ministers had previously said that the combined authority would receive £38 million a year for a 30-year investment fund following the election of an executive mayor this year.
But now ministers have said that the combined authority would receive just a third – about £12.7 million – in each of the next two years. It will not receive the full allocation until after the mayoral election.
The council’s cabinet is due to meet at Hove Town Hall at 2pm next Thursday (22 January). The meeting is scheduled to be webcast.
Maybe they should concentrate on delivering services that are currently substandard rather than wasting time and energy on something that will be cancelled by the next government.
Such as by reducing duplication, and ensuring the transition happens as smoothly as possible?
It won’t have time to happen before a national and local politics reset. No more money and time should be wasted on it.
That’s why councils across the country are requesting a delay to elections, though, aren’t they? Because otherwise, you’re effectively electing a zombie council for under a year, before you have another election. The delay gives the time for it to happen.
Might be good to note as well, James, LGR was started by Conservatives and continued by Labour, the political will to do this is cross-party.
Indeed.
Reform controlled Kent County Council is all in favour of a single Kent unitary (the current districts have made other proposals) and is complaining the Government isn’t moving fast enough!
I’ll repeat what I’ve said before about this. Nobody wants BHCC to expand East. Nor do I think West wants them either because they currently can’t even do the job within the current boundaries.
There is zero faith BHCC expanding is a good thing for the constituents that are living in those areas. Yes East Sussex isn’t great either but rather deal with the beast you know then a disconnected from reality council
As has been said before, Westwards doesn’t make sense because of several factors. East, there’s a case, but there is definitely the strong vocal feeling you describe. Ultimately, it’s not a decision made regionally; it’s for central government to consider all the proposals and decide.
The Government asked BHCC what it wanted. It doesn’t mean that the Government will approve the request to expand.
At least it is engaging in the process unlike some other councils.
My personal view is that the request to expand will be denied on the basis it will overly complicate the creation of the new East Sussex arrangements.
Also IiRC the government barred BHCC from proposing expanding west and to stay within the East Sussex boundaries.
The next national government won’t be going ahead with this and the next national election will be coming sooner than anyone thinks.
LGR is supported cross-party, so your assertion has no merit. There is no evidence of your bizarre claim of an early general election.
Silly comment.
There doesn’t need to be a GE until 2029. Why would there be one sooner than that? Even if there was it would likely be in 2028 not 2027.
Many Tories are in favour of these changes at a local level and the government is using previous Tory legislation to create these new roles and reorganise local councils.
The people don’t want this! Just another level of overpaid bureaucracy for which we will have to pay dearly. There should be a referendum before such changes are considered.
Are you aware that there is a £1.1 billion, 30-year investment deal in return for establishing an MCA? There have also been consultation exercises that have been repeatedly pushed at both local and national levels, from both BHCC and ESCC; did you get a chance to respond to either? Those are due to be considered alongside proposals, and there is also an outside chance that none of the proposals will be chosen to be taken forward.
Please tell us which other areas of the country have had a referendum to have these regional / metro under the provisions of the Cities and Local Government Devolution Act 2016?
But don’t bother because there is no legal provision for one because the Tory legislation that created these roles didn’t include it.
The people of Greater Manchester, Tees Valley, West Yorkshire, West Midlands etc did not have referendums so Sussex isn’t getting one.
Bizarre that our councils (two of the three past their sell-by date) are steaming ahead appointing expensive staff when there is literally nothing for them to do yet, and without the new mayor having any role in deciding who is appointed to these political positions.Another unwanted level of local government bureaucrats whose role will duplicate existing functions. A vast waste of public funds that could be put to far better use building council houses for people who need them or improving social care.
There’s actually lots of work to do to have the preparatory groundwork in place!