North East Devolution Consultation

The leaders of County Durham, Gateshead, Newcastle, Northumberland, North Tyneside, South Tyneside and Sunderland councils have agreed in principle to a devolution deal which the Government has confirmed it is ‘minded to’ approve.

A devolution deal for the region means unlocking £4.2 billion of investment, over 30 years, and seeing additional powers transferred from Whitehall to local people with better knowledge and experience of our communities.

It is expected to create 24,000 extra jobs, create 70,000 courses to give people the skills to get good jobs and leverage £5.0 billion of private sector investment.

This deal represents a significant opportunity to make a difference to people who live and work in the North East, and could have a hugely positive impact on the big issues that matter to you.

Whether that is new and better paid jobs, more affordable housing or placing ourselves at the forefront of Net Zero revolution, the chance of more decision-making powers and millions of pounds in funding will have a major impact on the North East.

The new authority, which would cover an area which is home to around 2 million people, will have the power to make decisions on areas such as transport, skills, housing, finance and economic development.

The deal includes:

• An investment fund of £1.4bn, or £48m a year, to support inclusive economic growth and support our regeneration priorities
• An indicative budget of around £1.8bn, or £60m a year, for adult education and skills – to meet local skills priorities and improve opportunities for residents
• A £900m package of investment to transform our transport system, with £563m from the City Regional Sustainable Transport Fund, on top of funding already announced for our buses and metro system
• £69m of investment in housing and regeneration, unlocking sites to bring forward new housing and commercial development

Local leaders have worked together to negotiate an offer which matches their ambition to make a difference for residents, communities and the economy.

The first step was to seek your views through this public consultation (this ran from 26 January 2023 and closed on 23 March 2023). We will give feedback on that process shortly.

This devolution deal is subject to adopting the model of a directly elected mayor over the whole of the Combined Area and replacing the two combined authorities which currently exist in that area, namely the North East Combined Authority (NECA) and North of Tyne Mayoral Combined Authority (NTCA), with a single new North East Mayoral Combined Authority (NEMCA).

The councils have published a scheme under the Local Democracy, Economic Development and Construction Act 2009.

Currently, Newcastle City Council, North Tyneside Council and Northumberland County Council are members of NTCA while Durham County Council, Gateshead Council, South Tyneside Council and Sunderland City Council are members of NECA.

Our published scheme sets out proposals for changing the way in which the councils work together on these matters, and for devolving new powers to the area of the seven councils.

There is no change to way the seven local authorities operate independently, and they will still be responsible for delivering the services they do currently.

This new combined authority will be led by a Mayor elected by residents across the area, and together with one representative from each of the seven constituent councils will form a Cabinet which will make decisions for the new combined authority.

 In the meantime, there are documents available on this page for reference if you would like more detail:

• A North East Authorities Governance Review which considers how functions to promote economic growth and improve transport are managed in the region, concluding that the creation of a new authority would deliver better outcomes.
• The scheme sets out proposals to change the governance arrangements for the area of the seven councils.
• The North East Devolution Deal document agreed in principle with government
• Frequently Asked Questions which provide answers to some common questions about this proposal. 
• Northumberland consultation data from our public consultation which ran from 26 January 2023 to 23 March 2023. Please note this is extracted from the region-wide consultation which asked questions about the wider North East arrangements set out in the scheme, rather than county specific questions, and therefore should be treated as such. It also does not show the level of institutional support that was received as part of the consultation, which is summarised in the full consultation report.