There is a huge focus on placing improved connectivity, infrastructure and better transport at the heart of the Northern Powerhouse and Midlands Engine but let us not forget the benefits to the nation of also getting walking and cycling onto the Devolution landscape.
Nothing much will happen on the ground unless government support is matched by action at local level, because active travel is fundamentally about local travel.
Look around the world - modern ‘smarter’ cities are prioritising attractive streets where people want to walk, work, study, shop, and simply hang out. New York, Brussels, Amsterdam and Shanghai are just a few cities that have introduced measures to enhance walking, with social and economic benefits for people and reductions in car traffic.
Some progress has been made here but there is still a very long way to go. In London the pedestrianisation of Oxford Street became an emblematic issue in the London mayoral election. In Manchester they paved much of its city centre retail area and are creating new cycle routes. In Edinburgh they are making 20mph the standard speed limit. Bristol is riding high in the new Smart City league table. Birmingham, has tamed the Bullring and are encouraging more children to walk to school. All good stuff for UK cities and for our general health, wealth and wellbeing but lots still to do. We all know that keeping active also counteracts many of the long-term illnesses that threaten to bankrupt the NHS and adult care therefore having big ideas on how best to increase active travel will become really important to local councils as they take on responsibility for public health.
Our cities are uniquely placed to bring about transformative change in terms of behaviour and all our cities in devo areas need to embed walking and cycling into their future devo plans. When big beasts like Andy Burnham are tipped to follow in the footsteps of Boris Johnson and Sadiq Khan in the city mayor stakes there is a real opportunity to make a difference. Given cities are getting more transport powers, the Devo Mayoral candidates will need to get active travel on their radars and it is vital that they don’t simply get consumed with grand plans for trains, planes and automobiles but also make a serious pitch for active travel; it’s the future.
Without letting government off the hook, devolution is essential for a successful cycling and walking investment strategy. A message to all you cities out there – seize the moment to make your place an active travel city. Look around you. It really is the smart way forward.
Headlines
New Cheshire devolution deal to be unveiled “in coming weeks”
According to the BBC, Cheshire has agreed a devolution deal with the Treasury which is set to be announced “in the coming weeks”. Three of Cheshire’s four councils submitted a bid to the Government last summer which claimed that a deal would “create 112,000 jobs, improve transport and boost business”. However, the region’s MPs are not agreed on whether Cheshire should be made to adopt an elected Mayor as part of the deal, with Conservative MP for Warrington South David Mowat in favour of the proposals and Helen Jones, Labour MP for Warrington North opposed. The issue is set to be debated in Parliament next week.
Local Government academics warn of devo “tug of war” between CAs and Mayors
Writing in the MJ this week former chief executive of the Local Government Information Unit, Dennis Reed and emeritus professor of local government at De Montfort University, Steve Leach warn that the Government’s approach to devolution is setting up combined authorities and Mayors for a “future tug of war” over executive powers. They ask whether high profile candidates like Andy Burnham will “accept being chairs of the combined authority when they see themselves in the Boris/Ken roles?”, and warn that the transfer of executive powers to Mayors will leave “hollowed-out local authorities with fewer councillors, leaving them as little more than glorified town councils”.
Northern Powerhouse risks becoming "just another boy's club"
The Fawcett Society has published new research which finds that 72% of senior leadership roles in the Northern Powerhouse regions are occupied by men, with women only holding one in five council leader and mayoral roles. Chief Executive Sam Smethers warns that “whether we intend to or not, we are devolving power from women to men” and says the Northern Powerhouse project risks becoming "just another boy's club" if women’s representation in key roles is not increased. The Fawcett Society released the research to launch a year-long study to “tackle gender bias in local government”.
MPs question Chancellor’s progress on Northern Powerhouse
In the Commons this week several MPs used Treasury Questions to ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, George Osborne about his progress establishing the Northern Powerhouse. The Former Shadow Work and Pensions Secretary, Rachel Reeves criticised the Government’s decision to cancel the Leeds trolleybus scheme, and Wirral MP Alison McGovern asked for further transport infrastructure in the North West. Read the full exchanges online here.
What else is happening?
WEST OF ENGLAND
North Somerset rejects devo deal
North Somerset Council has rejected the West of England devo deal at a council vote this week, warning it could lead to a “Bristol-centric mayor and a combined authority acting against the interest” of the area. The decision comes after Bath and North East Somerset Council asked its Leader to renegotiate the deal and remove the requirement for an elected Mayor. North Somerset leader Cllr Nigel Ashton said the current deal proposed by Government “is not attractive enough for us to support”.
LIVERPOOL
Merseyside mayoral elections date set
The Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, Greg Clark has laid an order before Parliament to enable elections for Liverpool city region’s first elected Mayor to take place next year on 4 May. In a statement he said the “key” to the region’s accountability for its new powers is “an accountable, elected leader who can direct its future and on 4 May residents across the city region will have a direct say over who that is”.
Luciana Berger: People are “disconnected” from devolution
Shadow Mental Health Minister, Luciana Berger has started her campaign to be Labour’s candidate for Liverpool Mayor with a summit of “innovators and thought leaders” to consult on policies for inclusion in her election manifesto. She says that people across the city region are “disconnected from the devolution” and hopes the series of consultations will “makes a real success of the devolution deal by listening, involving people and making the best use of all the talent, energy, and experience we have across our region”.
SHEFFIELD
Shadow Minister tells Yorkshire to “seize the moment on devolution”
Shadow Cabinet Office Minister, Louise Haigh has written an article in the Yorkshire Post this week calling for additional powers for an elected Mayor to enforce worker’s rights. She says that if the region is to “have a stake in the Northern revival” then “we will do things differently here and workers’ rights will be properly respected”, even if this means “forg[ing] a direction which jars with Westminster”.
TEES VALLEY
Tees Valley: opportunity unlimited
Lord Heseltine’s independent review of the Tees Valley was published this week, which reveals that the Government will be establishing a team of civil servants in Tees Valley to support devolution to the region and “test a new relationship with places that bring the best out of close contact with ministers”. The Government commissioned the review to examine how to attract investment to the region following the closure of the Redcar steel plant last year. The report recommends “transforming” education and skills provision and looking at extending the Transpennine electrification scheme to Teesside.
NORTH EAST
Favoured Conservative Candidate for NE Mayor resigns
North East businessman, Jeremy Middleton declared his intention to run for the new North East mayoralty in February as the Conservative nomination, and was assumed to secure the nomination as “a two-times Parliamentary candidate in the North East, a five-times council candidate in Newcastle and former Chairman of the National Conservative Convention”. However, this week the Newcastle Evening Chronicle reported that Middleton has left the Conservative Party after becoming “disillusioned with Westminster squabbles”, and will instead run as an independent candidate.
WEST MIDLANDS
Regulations to establish WMCA delayed
Devolution to the West Midlands suffered a small setback this week as the vote to approve the creation of the West Midlands Combined Authority was delayed until the 15 June. The regulations formally establishing the CA were due to be approved in the House of Commons on Monday, but the Speaker, John Bercow deferred the vote until next week, leaving the draft WMCA to launch its Strategic Economic Plan without formal ratification.