I have been in Devon for half a century.
Done properly, there is an argument for taking powers out of Westminster and giving local communities greater control over the decisions that affect them. I have never opposed that principle.
However, there is a difference between supporting devolution and signing a blank cheque for an entirely new system of government. The Government is making the incentives for having a directly elected mayor increasingly difficult to ignore. Ministers have made clear that mayoral areas will have access to greater powers and funding, including plans for mayors to retain a share of income tax and business rates generated through economic growth.
For Devon, the question is therefore becoming whether we can afford to stand outside the system the Government is creating. There could be real opportunities. Greater control over transport, skills, housing and investment could help tackle longstanding challenges, and I certainly do not want Devon left at the back of the queue while other parts of England gain greater powers and resources.
But local people deserve answers before such a fundamental change takes place. What exactly would a Devon mayor be responsible for? How would the mayor work with the new unitary councils? What would the relationship be with Cornwall? How would the mayor be properly scrutinised? What staff and civil servants would sit beneath the new authority, what would it cost and who would ultimately be accountable? At the moment, too many of those questions remain unanswered.
This comes while Devon is already undergoing enormous upheaval. The Government has confirmed that our existing council structure will be replaced by four unitary authorities across Devon, Plymouth and Torbay. We could therefore be redesigning local councils while simultaneously creating a new tier of strategic government above them.
I have repeatedly pressed Ministers on what devolution will actually mean for Devon, including whether adopting a directly elected mayor will effectively become the price of accessing the full range of devolved powers.
Devon Mayor Proposal Raises Unanswered Questions