Devolution in England Debate
Full Debate: Read Full DebateLord Norton of Louth
Main Page: Lord Norton of Louth (Conservative - Life peer)Department Debates - View all Lord Norton of Louth's debates with the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government
(4 years, 1 month ago)
Lords ChamberMy Lords, I am afraid that I cannot pre-empt the White Paper on that point, but there has been full consultation that will take in the lessons learned from the pandemic.
Does my noble friend agree that while we do not necessarily need rigid uniformity in the distribution of power to areas throughout England, there does need to be some degree of equity, so that the more rural and smaller areas are not the losers relative to new and larger regional or metropolitan authorities? What is his strategy for achieving that, and will it be addressed in the White Paper?
My Lords, I thank my noble friend for putting the case for rural communities. Our current mayoral combined authority model is successful in delivering both for major cities such as Manchester and areas such as North of Tyne, which have significant rural areas.