After years of dissatisfaction with the way the Treasury distributes funds for projects and wages, the twelve metro mayors of England have been banding together to pressure the prime minister, Rachel Reeves, and Angela Rayner for further authority and funding.
However, there is serious concern that the chancellor, Ms. Reeves, would only fund some important areas while ignoring others. All of the mayors who talked to News agreed that more councils will go bankrupt as a result of the pressure on local government budgets, which metro mayors collaborate with.
They have more discretion to impose local taxes and distribute revenues wherever they see fit because of a so-called “single pot” of money. Steve Rotherham, the metro mayor of Liverpool City Region, is advocating for a £1 nightly “tourist tax” on the city’s hotels in order to finance regional tourism initiatives. Some mayors are hopeful that they will have more discretion over how they spend precepts, or locally imposed taxes;
Longer-term planning is made possible by multi-year budget settlements.
The mayors want additional authority in a number of areas, including skills, where they believe the Department of Education is hesitant to relinquish control, and transportation, where they hope to have some success.
