A former Nottingham council leader says that money offered in the East Midlands devolution deal is just about enough for everyone in the city to "buy a McDonald's". The proposed devolution deal will see money and powers being handed to a new East Midlands authority, which is due to be fully established in 2024.
It will be able to take more local decisions on matters such as transport and housing, with a newly elected East Midlands mayor leading this work. To help with this, the Government will provide £38 million to the new East Midlands authority every year for the next 30 years.
This £1.14bn agreement was signed by Nottingham City Council, Nottinghamshire County Council, Derby City Council and Derbyshire County Council. A consultation with the public has now been launched on it, running until January, and councillors across the four councils are now having their say on the proposals.
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The first council to discuss the proposed deal was Nottingham City Council at a meeting on Monday (October 31). Councillor Andrew Rule, the leader of the Conservative Party group at that council, said: "This provides an opportunity for the region to secure additional investment which would otherwise not have been available to it and stands Nottingham in place to receive its rightful share of the investment.
"In tandem with this are the initial powers that will be conferred on the elected mayor, which will bring about a more integrated approach across the region to transport, closer working between the region's Police and Crime Commissioners in the delivery of law enforcement and improvements to regional housing strategy."
But Labour's Councillor Graham Chapman, a former Leader and Deputy Leader of Nottingham City Council, questioned the amount of money being offered. Many Labour councillors also expressed concerns about this, though many believed the current offer was "just a start."
Councillor Chapman said: "This deal is not actually what it seems. We're talking about £1.14 billion over 30 years, that amounts to £16 per head, per year, that is not largesse.
"Over 30 years, because it isn't index-linked, that amount per year will decline to about £5, you'll just about be able to buy a McDonald's with it. We've got austerity coming, plus inflation, and that will erode further any money that's coming in our direction."
Addressing the concerns raised, the Leader of Nottingham City Council, Labour's David Mellen, said: "Is this a perfect deal? No. Is there enough money? No. But shall we make the imperfect the enemy of the good? I don't believe we should, I think we should take the opportunity there is here, which others have described as just a start, work with it and say we need more.
"The alternative is to close the door on this and say it's good enough for Liverpool, Manchester, Newcastle, Sheffield, Leeds and Bristol, even for Peterborough and Cambridgeshire, but no we don't really want it in Nottingham thank you very much. I don't believe that's the right way and I think if we're here to stand up for Nottingham, we need to take the money that is on offer even though it is not enough, because it's a start."
The devolution deal will next be discussed at Nottinghamshire County Council on Friday (November 4). That council's leader, Ben Bradley, recently said that the new Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak, was a "firm believer" in devolution and in the East Midlands deal.
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