Grant Shapps to control spending decisions on mayors' £5.7bn transport fund in 'devolution roll-back'

Chancellor Rishi Sunak’s October Budget and Spending Review granted £830m to West Yorkshire and £570m to South Yorkshire under the wider £5.7bn City Region Sustainable Transport Settlement programme aimed at areas of the country with metro mayors.

The Government said at the time the money would help deliver a “local transport revolution”, with the regional schemes earmarked for funding including the initial stages of a mass transit scheme for Leeds, renewing Sheffield’s Supertram network and creating a largely segregated cycling route along Thornton Road - one of Bradford’s busiest roads.

But a Freedom of Information request by The Yorkshire Post has revealed that on November 22, Transport Secretary Grant Shapps wrote to West Yorkshire Mayor Tracy Brabin setting out how many of the proposed schemes will require his department’s approval before they can go ahead.

The letter states “to maintain the appropriate oversight which taxpayers would expect, investment for the following types of schemes will require a separate business case and approval from my department - any scheme which requires funding after 2026/27; any single scheme which costs £50m or more; any scheme where my department has concerns about value for money, delivery or integration with national networks”.

It also warns that “funding may be reduced if agreed schemes are not delivered, modified, delayed significantly or removed”. The letter states the £50m threshold “may be revised in future based on performance”.

The Yorkshire Post understands a letter setting out the same spending rules was also sent to South Yorkshire Mayor Dan Jarvis on the same day and will apply to other mayoral authorities.

Others affected by the rules include Labour mayors Andy Burnham in Greater Manchester, Liverpool's Steve Rotherham and Marvin Rees in Bristol, as well as Conservatives Andy Street in the West Midlands and Ben Houchen in Tees Valley.

It was sent just four days after the DfT controversially stripped powers from Transport for the North in relation to the delivery of the Northern Powerhouse Rail project - leading to accusations of a “massive Whitehall power grab”.

The emergence of the controversial spending rules comes after a nightmare week for Boris Johnson’s Government which has become embroiled in accusations about multiple Christmas parties held during lockdown and accusations the Prime Minister misled standards adviser Lord Geidt about payments for the refurbishment of his Downing Street flat.

Ms Brabin said today the conditions being set up the Government “go against the very principles of devolution” and are “at odds” with the levelling up agenda.

She said: “I welcome the £830 million provided by Government and will continue to work with the Department for Transport about the outcomes of this funding and hope this will start to address the decades of underinvestment in transport in our region.

“However, we believe that some of the conditions set against the funding go against the very principles of devolution, mainly the freedom to decide how best to meet our local needs and create new opportunity. The Government has previously talked the talk about the importance of strong local leadership and ‘levelling up’, however these measures are at odds with this.

“Government expect to monitor the delivery of our schemes closely, but also want to sign off on single projects above £50m. This requirement adds an additional layer of bureaucracy which risks delaying the delivery of projects and is an example of where devolution is being rolled back.

“It’s vital that we have the freedom and flexibility over our own future, rather than Government officials imposing conditions and restrictions from Westminster, and I will continue to make this case to Ministers.”

The row comes after it was revealed the Government intends to create more mayoral-style authorities across the country in a bid to widen devolution.

The delayed Levelling Up White Paper will reportedly simplify local government by introducing more mayoral-style systems across the country.

A draft of the white paper seen by The Independent newspaper sets out proposals to streamline local government which is currently split across county councils, district councils and unitary authorities into a simpler model seen in London.

A DfT spokesperson said: “These City Region Sustainable Transport Settlements represent a major government investment in our largest city regions outside London and it is for the Mayor of West Yorkshire to prioritise them in line with local plans.

“Most decisions can and should be made locally, however to protect the taxpayer it’s only right the government has a role in the largest investments.”

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