In less than two years, Sussex will have a mayor – but what does that mean and why does it matter?
Over the past year or so, there has been a great many news reports about devolution and local government reorganisation.
The latter will see the scrapping of all the county and district councils across Sussex and replaced with a number of unitary councils.
In the case of Brighton and Hove City Council, it is likely to be retained and to serve a slightly expanded area.
This would take in the eastern half of Saltdean as well as Telscombe Cliffs and Peacehaven – and the part of Falmer that is currently served by Lewes District Council.
In addition to those changes comes devolution – the transfer of certain powers and responsibilities from government to regions – and that’s where the mayor comes in.
Devolution led to the Sussex and Brighton Strategic Authority being set up in April, with the first directly elected mayor of the county due to be voted in by the public in 2028.
And this week the new strategic authority held its first annual general meeting (AGM) in Crawley.
Before then, the way is being paved by a six-strong strategic authority board made up of leading councillors from West Sussex County Council, East Sussex County Council and Brighton and Hove City Council.
Once the mayor is elected, he or she will chair the board. But until then, three members – one from each council – will take turns, starting with Bella Sankey, Labour leader of Brighton and Hove City Council. They will each serve eight months.
Budget documents show that the new strategic authority should receive £117 million over the next four years – part of a £1.14 billion pot provided by the government to cover the next 30 years.
And while the new unitary authorities created by local government reorganisation will provide the services that are currently provide by existing councils, the strategic authority will deal with bigger decisions and work to attract investment and funding to the county.
It has 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, wellbeing and public service reform
- public safety
- culture
- rural affairs and coastal communities
The government believes that these are all matters which are better handled regionally, by people with local knowledge, when it comes to making key strategic decisions.
So how influential can mayors be? Ask Andy Burnham who, even before he made his move on 10 Downing Street, was widely known for his work as the mayor of Greater Manchester and for serving as a champion for the region.
Such is the opportunity that comes with having a mayor – someone speaking up for the region at the highest levels of government and securing investment for much-needed infrastructure projects.
Take the West Midlands Combined Authority, for example. Founded in 2016, its work has included bringing five railway stations and new tram lines to the area, with its mayor fighting for funding and investment.
Initiatives that can be overlooked when lumped in with a national strategy can be better understood and championed by a regional mayor, bringing in money that may otherwise have been unavailable.
In Sussex, the new mayor will no doubt bring their own views and priorities to the table but they won’t have overall control – the board will have to agree any decisions.
The board currently has two Labour members, two from the Liberal Democrats and two from Reform UK.
The mayor will be the directly elected voice of the county, working with leaders and lobbying government for what is needed. But the board will remain integral to the strategic authority.
Some things are still up in the air. It’s not yet known how many staff the strategic authority will have – though it’s likely to be a few hundred, including a chief executive officer earning about £190,000 a year.
It’s also not yet known where the authority will be based. But board meetings, scrutiny meetings and audit meetings look likely to be held around the county so that as many people as possible have the chance to see what’s going on.
The next board meeting will be held on Wednesday 29 July at a location yet to be announced.
