Dan Fell: Prove that One Yorkshire will work in reality

In my neck of the woods – Doncaster – this debate has focused on whether South Yorkshire should focus on getting an existing devolution deal over the line or whether this area’s local authorities should collaborate with other regional partners in pursuit of a bigger Yorkshire deal.

On a near daily basis, I have been pressed to give the view of Doncaster Chamber and, typically, it has been someone urging me to ‘pick a team’ or adopt a binary position. Thus far, I’ve resisted that temptation for two key reasons.

Firstly, the issue is complex and, therefore, I’m personally loath to get involved in a version of this debate that is dumbed down to a simple South Yorkshire versus Yorkshire conversation.

Tellingly, there are extremely intelligent and capable people promoting both the South Yorkshire and Yorkshire worldviews at the moment; that tells me there is merit in both arguments and that the likely way forward is through listening, detailed conversation and negotiation.

Conversely, there seems to be a number of stakeholders that, presently, seem intent on shouting each other into submission.

Secondly, and far more importantly, Doncaster Chamber has thus far held back from adopting a position because, in all candour, I did not believe that the Doncaster business community had been fully involved in this debate. To remedy this, our Chamber used the summer to get out to our business community and seek more detailed views from businesses. The results are extremely interesting.

Seventy per cent of the Doncaster businesses that responded stated that they think a Yorkshire devolution deal should be an end goal for the region. Of those, 52 per cent believe that should be the region’s sole focus, whereas 18 per cent think that a South Yorkshire deal should be done as an initial stepping stone. Nineteen per cent stated a preference for doing a South Yorkshire deal only and 11 per cent were not in favour of devolution. When digging into responses beyond the headlines, it is clear that there are vociferous voices on either side.

For some Doncaster businesses, it is galling to be delaying on the South Yorkshire deal, for others the Sheffield City Region has always felt like an awkward construct and there is a much greater level of opportunity for our borough by aligning behind Brand Yorkshire.

When speaking to those firms that prefer a Yorkshire option, it is the scale and size that appeals. This is not for the sake of it, but because firms believe that a substantive regional deal which covers a population of five million people would have real weight and stand a better chance of delivering against the issues that matter most to our private sector. In order, those issues are transport and connectivity, education and skills, and investment and international trade. In all cases scale is important but, crucially, it is about influence too.

For example, in relation to transport, the region could be a vocal partner to Greater Manchester in demanding a parity of investment between the North and South on transport issues. Regarding skills, so many of us see skills as an ‘end-to-end’ issue and yet the Government, so far, has refused to devolve pre-16 education resources and responsibilities; a Yorkshire Mayor would be well placed to challenge this for the nonsense that it is.

Finally, in relation to investment and international trade, businesses are recognising that the world has fundamentally changed in the last 18 months. Pre-EU Referendum, Brand Yorkshire was less important than it is now; in a global economy, many Doncaster firms see real sense in aligning with a brand that is internationally significant and has a ‘front person’ who can give real gravitas on an international stage.

In conclusion, a significant percentage of the Doncaster firms that engaged with our consultation want to see a Yorkshire-wide devolution deal.

It is not, however, a black and white picture and I would urge those seeking a Yorkshire deal to listen hard to the concerns of those businesses that disagree with them. To be explicit, proponents of a Yorkshire deal need to give assurances that voices from smaller economies will be heard on a regional platform; they also need to prove the naysayers wrong by demonstrating that Yorkshire devolution is a real prospect that can win the support of national government and that it can be achieved without undue delay.

Finally, it is not for businesses to make recommendations for how we get from A to B – that is for the region’s public sector and politicians to figure out.

Businesses would however encourage all concerned to act quickly, pragmatically and – most importantly of all – ambitiously.

Dan Fell is chief executive of Doncaster Chamber.