Yorkshire's devolution plan on the table as council leaders hope to move forward with a deal

Leaders and chief executives will meet in York in the hope they can iron out a plan to negotiate a deal with the Government.

A string of North Yorkshire Conservative council leaders have come forward and said it is time for councils in North, West and East Yorkshire to negotiate a devolution deal with the Government.

The move is likely to be opposed by Labour leaders amid doubts they could persuade rank-and-file councillors to back the Greater Yorkshire option.

It follows the announcement of the One Yorkshire plan over the summer, a proposal for a single devolution deal for the whole of the region.

The leader of North Yorkshire County Council Carl Les said the Government needed to make it clear what exactly was on the table.

He said: “If the Government says we can’t have a One Yorkshire deal, the next step is to consider Greater Yorkshire.

“We need to know if it is on the table or not really. The Government has a role to play in this. It is their powers we are asking them to give up.

“At tomorrow’s meeting I want to know what we think about the Government’s response to the question we asked after the last meeting, which was about where do the geographical lines get drawn.”

Coun Richard Cooper, leader of Harrogate Borough Council, said Yorkshire tax payers’ money was currently going towards supporting devolution deals in other parts of the country, and it was time the region benefitted.

He said: “The Greater Yorkshire option seems the most sensible as the Government has already acted sympathetic towards it. It makes sense, let’s just get on with it.

“It is about the businesses, communities and people, it is not about who is in charge of this and that.”