What the manifestos say about combined authorities

Posted on: 14 June 2024 by Dr Tom Arnold in Blog

With the manifestos of the three largest parties in England now published, Dr Tom Arnold assesses what the future may look like for combined authorities.

Since their establishment in 2014, combined authorities have played an increasingly prominent role in English political life, particularly since the introduction of elected ‘metro’ mayors from 2017 onwards. Almost 50% of England’s population is now represented by a directly elected regional mayor, with many of these figures now household names. 

In previous elections where a change of government was widely anticipated, opposition parties have often pledged significant overhauls of sub-national governance arrangements. In 1997, for example, Labour promised referendums on devolution in Scotland and Wales, and the introduction of Regional Development Agencies (RDAs) in England. In 2010, the Conservatives indicated they would scrap RDAs and other regional bodies in favour of a more localist and neighbourhood-focused approach, ultimately landing on Local Enterprise Partnerships with a strong business voice as the preferred ‘regional fix’. This time, all three main parties promise – to varying degrees – a continuation of the current arrangements.

Are all the main parties committed to maintaining combined authorities?

Labour’s manifesto pledges to “deepen devolution settlements for existing Combined Authorities” and “widen devolution to more areas, encouraging local authorities to come together to take on new powers”. Building on the ‘Level 4’ devolution powers introduced in the 2022 Levelling Up The UK White Paper (LUWP), Labour states that extended powers will be available to combined authorities in areas such as transport, adult education and skills, housing and planning, and employment support.

In the Conservative manifesto, meanwhile, English devolution is notable for its absence. Combined authorities are not mentioned at all, while mayors are only discussed in relation to proposals to provide them more funding to spend on roads. This is a striking departure from the emphasis on ‘levelling up’ in the party’s 2019 manifesto, which promised to establish “full devolution across England, building on the successful devolution of powers to city region mayors”.

The Liberal Democrat manifesto is more cautious than Labour on combined authorities, promising to “end the top-down reorganisation of councils and the imposition of elected mayors on communities who do not want them” – suggesting an end to the hierarchy of powers set out in the LUWP which made clear the highest level of devolution would only be available to mayoral combined authorities. 

Will combined authorities get new powers?

The Labour manifesto is short on specific details about new powers available to combined authorities but there are strong indications that combined authorities will be expected to take on new responsibilities. A key policy is to introduce Local Growth Plans that will “align with…national industrial strategy”. Although these plans will “cover towns and cities across the country”, it is widely anticipated that combined authorities, where present, will be tasked with developing them.

If elected, Labour is expected to reform the planning regime as part of its objective to increase the number of new homes being built. Its manifesto acknowledges that planning for housing should be carried out “on a larger than local scale”, pledging to introduce “effective new mechanisms for cross-boundary strategic planning” and require all combined authorities to “strategically plan for housing growth in their areas”. This goes further than the current approach, where spatial planning is an optional policy area for combined authorities. Only Greater Manchester has successfully approved a full spatial framework for the city-region (albeit covering only nine of its ten boroughs). West Midlands has abandoned its spatial plan, while Liverpool City Region’s is still in development.

Employment and skills is another area where Labour has indicated a willingness to devolve further, pledging to “work with local areas to create plans to support more disabled people and those with health conditions into work” and “devolve funding so local areas can shape a joined-up work, health and skills offer for local people”. Labour’s manifesto states it will work with mayoral combined authorities and JobCentre Plus as partners on employment support. Liverpool City Region Combined Authority has pioneered work in this area over recent years, through schemes such as the Households Into Work programme.

On transport, combined authorities could build on their growing suite of powers to create more “unified and integrated transport systems”, promote active travel and bring bus services back into municipal ownership. Whether additional funding will be provided to achieve these goals remains to be seen.

Will anything change about how combined authorities are run?

The somewhat ad hoc character of English devolution over the last decade, with combined authorities created and expanded through a series of bespoke deals between local policymakers and national government, has prompted increased interest in how their governance could be improved. Responding to this, Labour has pledged to review combined authority governance arrangements to “unblock decision making” and “provide greater flexibility with integrated settlements for Mayoral Combined Authorities that can show exemplary management of public money”. While not explicit in its manifesto, there have been some suggestions Labour could introduce longer-term funding settlements for combined authorities.

Metro mayors would also become members of Labour’s proposed new Council of the Nations and Regions, alongside the First Ministers of Scotland and Wales and the First and Deputy Ministers of Northern Ireland. What powers mayors would have in this new institution are unclear, but it could provide a more formalised route for intergovernmental relations than currently exists. Cynics may point to its potential for national government to maintain a tight leash over elected regional representatives.

The other manifestos have less to say about what may change in how combined authorities operate, although there are signs from the Conservatives that they may be more willing to intervene to prevent mayors implementing measures perceived to clash with national policy. The party’s manifesto pledges, for example, to ban mayors from introducing pay per mile road pricing and require any proposals for new Low Traffic Neighbourhoods or 20mph schemes to be put to a local referendum. 

Will combined authorities receive additional funding or new powers to raise their own funds?

Labour’s promise to introduce “integrated settlements” suggests more combined authorities will receive the kind of multi-year funding provided to Greater Manchester and the West Midlands in their new trailblazer deals. Labour has also pledged to end “wasteful” competitive bidding processes, exemplified in recent years by a host of targeted funds which combined and local authorities are asked to submit proposals for.

Contrary to suggestions in recent months that Labour was exploring the possibility of fiscal devolution, the manifesto does not include any proposals to provide combined authorities with additional tax raising powers. In acknowledging the “acute financial challenges” faced by local authorities, however, Labour has indicated there may be action to prevent more local authorities following the likes of Birmingham City Council into section 114 bankruptcy.

Will we see any new combined authorities created? 

The Conservative manifesto promises a continuation of the current incentivised approach to devolution, promising a deal “every part of England that wants one” by 2030. Level 4 powers would be offered to all mayoral combined authorities, “starting with Tees Valley” – now the only combined authority area led by a Conservative mayor following the local elections last month.

Labour, meanwhile, has shifted away from the proposals announced in its Power and Partnership plan published earlier this year to expand devolution across the whole of England by asking all councils not currently in a combined authority or county devolution deal to “join together on sensible economic geographies and take on a new suite of powers”. This ‘devolution everywhere’ approach has not made the manifesto, which promises only to “widen devolution to more areas”. If elected, it is anticipated that a Take Back Control bill focusing on English devolution could be one of the first major policy actions taken by a Labour government. It will be intriguing to see how far Labour may be willing to go to expand the combined authority model beyond its current geographies.

While the manifestos have now set out what UK government will expect of combined authorities over the coming years, what combined authorities ask of government will be equally interesting. As these relatively new sub-national institutions mature, it will be intriguing to see how willing metro mayors are to use their own mandates to go further than or diverge from government policy. This dynamic will be particularly interesting in the event of a Labour victory at the general election. Would a more collegiate relationship between mayors and national government emerge? Or will the tensions between local and national actors that have characterised sub-national politics for so long re-emerge in a different form?