Agenda and draft minutes

Apologies for absence from the meeting were received on behalf of Councillors B Holden, M Peplow, M Robinson, and N Stubbs.

There were no minutes requiring approval.

There were no declarations of disclosable pecuniary, other registrable or non-registrable interests.

The Mayor welcomed Emma Dickinson-Gater and Cty Cllr Ged Mirfin who spoke in respect of Agenda Item 5 – Devolution Deal for Lancashire.

Report of the Chief Executive enclosed.

The Chief Executive submitted a report updating the Council on progress with the Devolution Deal for Lancashire.

In November 2023, the Government announced it had negotiated a Level 2 devolution deal with Lancashire, Blackpool, and Blackburn with Darwen Councils. There then followed a period of consultation across the three upper tier areas, where the public and interested organisations, including District Councils, could respond to the proposed devolution offer, and the creation and governance arrangements for the proposed combined authority. Policy and Finance Committee then approved the following at its meeting of 24 January 2024:

Following the consultation, the proposed deal was ratified by the three upper tier Councils and was making its way through the Parliamentary approval process, however, the Parliamentary Election in May 2024 halted its progress.

The report included letters received in July 2024 from the Deputy Prime Minister and the Director General responsible for Devolution, in regard to a new Devolution deal. The status of the previously negotiated deal was not clear, and the role of district Councils in combined authorities had not been resolved. The Leaders of 9 of the 12 District Councils in Lancashire, not including Ribble Valley, had written to the Deputy Prime Minister and Lancashire MPs asking for the current Devolution deal not to be progressed as currently proposed, to allow District Councils to submit alternative proposals. The Leader, along with the Leaders of Fylde and Wyre Councils, had written to the Deputy Prime Minister asking for greater district involvement, and to request that the Lancashire deal was approved as soon as possible, setting out a strong opposition to a directly elected Mayor for Lancashire and for any local government reorganisation.  It was unclear how the new devolution deal would be approved and what consultation process would be followed.

The Leader of the Council, Councillor S Atkinson, spoke on the report and highlighted his concerns for the Ribble Valley should there be a merger between the District and County Council, or 3 smaller Unitary Councils, most likely in Blackburn, Blackpool, and Preston. He felt that local government in the Ribble Valley provided the best outcomes for residents. He noted that the previous deal had been subject to both organisational and public consultation and felt that any new deal on the future of local government in Lancashire should be subject to the same consultation.

The Leader proposed that Council:

1.Note the latest position on devolution

2.Support the Leader’s response to  ...  view the full minutes text for item 181.

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