North Yorkshire devolution row escalates as council leader accuses colleagues of double standards

A row over levels of public support for major changes to North Yorkshire’s system of local government has escalated as a Conservative district council leader accused his Tory county council colleagues of double standards.
Ryedale District Council leader Councillor Keane DuncanRyedale District Council leader Councillor Keane Duncan
Ryedale District Council leader Councillor Keane Duncan

Ryedale District Council leader Councillor Keane Duncan said the county council’s Stronger Together report to support its bid to create a single unitary authority for England’s largest county showed it had “lukewarm and underwhelming” public support.

The row has rumbled on as both the districts and the county council held half-hour meetings with the meeting with the Local Government Minister to discuss their rival proposals after submitting them to the Government last week.

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The criticism comes two weeks after the county council called into question the validity of the districts’ claims of support for their proposal to split the county into east and west councils, one of which was based on just 29 responses to an online survey.

The lengthy county council report shows the results of its market research survey were based on responses from 409 people, and includes graphics indicating levels of support for particular issues from each of the county’s seven districts.

It also shows how 51 per cent of respondents thought the creation of a single unitary authority was not important or were neutral towards the move.

Critics of the county council’s bid have questioned the statistical relevance of the graphics for Richmondshire, Craven and Ryedale as each are based on fewer than 40 responses.

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Ryedale District Council’s leader, Councillor Keane Duncan, said the polling conducted by the county council had “spectacularly backfired”.

He said: “The county council states support for its proposal is ‘undeniable’. Yet the results of their own poll paint a different picture. It seems their polling may have spectacularly backfired, with support that can be described as lukewarm and underwhelming at best.

“When asked about a single unitary, more people said it was not important or were neutral than said it was important. Meanwhile, a significant number raised concerns about local voice and the size of North Yorkshire, or explicitly said they would prefer for the county to be split. I expect this is hardly the ringing endorsement they were hoping for.

"While all market research is taken with a pinch of salt, ours was very straightforward and very simple. Two thirds of people polled said they preferred our model. It shows we are on the right track and a significant proportion of residents believe, like us, that East and West is best.”

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North Yorkshire County Council leader Councillor Carl Les declined to respond to the criticism of the county council’s research.

He said: “The minister has invited proposals. We have submitted ours and believe our evidence is credible. Now it’s up to the minister and his team of officials.

“They will do the evaluation and I’m sure they are well versed in spotting anomalies, if anomalies exist in either bid. I would rather concentrate now on the council’s services and leave it until the minister makes an announcement about the proposals and starts a consultation with the public and other key stakeholders.”