A devolution deal for Norfolk is to be considered, when the county council’s Infrastructure and Development Select Committee meets tomorrow.
Three reports are to be considered, as they look to open the doors to major investment across the region in things such as infrastructure, skills, housing, and transport. The devolution deal was originally supported by councillors in December last year, with that being subject to a vote on a new publicly elected leader this July.
Leader of the County Council Kay Mason-Billig, who spoke about the devolution journey in a recent edition of the Public Sector Executive Magazine, said:
“Devolution will bring major benefits to Norfolk and will open the door to even more. We have been working hard to ensure all the groundwork is there, so that we can take this forward, subject to the approval of councillors.”
The three reports that will be considered at the meeting tomorrow, are:
- A report to enable transfer of the government’s adult skills budget, worth £12.8 million per year
- A report into how the county and district councils have worked on a pipeline of brownfield site regeneration projects – with this developing up to 580 homes using £7 million of devolution funding.
- A report into how the £20 million investment fund will be administered, with this involving district councils and other partners as they advise the leader and cabinet on investment decisions.
Councillor Vic Thomson, Chair of the Infrastructure and Development Select Committee, added:
“My committee is keen to explore the arrangements being put in place, so that we can make a success of devolution, if councillors give the go-ahead in July.”
Benefits of the devolution deal are that more decisions can be made by local leaders who know what is best for their communities, as well as injecting more than £600 million of investment over the course of 30 years.
Image credit: iStock
