The first paper from a review of how to turn devolution into sustainable growth has said the challenge is ‘no longer principally one of devolving powers but of building capability'.
The next phase of English devolution needs ‘a shift from incremental deal-making towards deliberate institution-building', according to the first output from the Mike Emmerich Independent Review of Growth-Capable Devolution.
The paper said strategic authorities ‘need greater clarity of purpose, stronger institutional capability, more dependable revenue and a sustainable pipeline of leadership and specialist talent'.
It added that central government must also adapt, ‘developing funding, accountability and support arrangements that strengthen local capability rather than unintentionally constraining it'.
‘Without changes on both sides of this relationship, the ambitions now being placed upon strategic authorities are unlikely to be realised', the paper concluded.
Writing online in The MJ today, Mike Emmerich said it was clear from the Cabinet's Rewiring the State paper at the end of July that the Prime Minister was determined to carry his ambition for ‘good growth in every postcode' out of the realm of politics ‘and firmly into that of public administration too'.
But Emmerich, who is founding director of Metro Dynamics, warned of the risk of delays, adding: ‘Recent experience of local government reorganisation, or attempts to create new towns, shows what can happen when central government meets local.
‘There is plenty of scope for things to move much more slowly than is consistent with the Prime Minister's ambition. And if even the National Audit Office concludes that Whitehall has, in effect, tied places in knots with the accountability arrangements surrounding Integrated Settlements, it is clear there is much work to do.
‘The danger for any government facing that dilemma is that it resorts to the old techniques: top-down programmes, centrally commissioned support and new processes intended to make things happen which can end up compounding the very problems they were designed to solve.'
The review will report in October 2026, with a White Paper setting out plans for a full set of devolution reforms expected in the autumn alongside the Budget and the fiscal devolution roadmap.
