Nick Clegg: Newcastle could win new powers over public transport
NEWCASTLE could win new powers to decide key transport services under plans being outlined by Nick Clegg today.
The Deputy Prime Minister will raise the possibility of major English cities having their own version of Transport for London (TfL), which is controlled by the capital’s mayor Boris Johnson and oversees public transport in the city.
Birmingham, Bristol, Leeds, Liverpool, Nottingham, Manchester and Sheffield, as well as Newcastle, could also get a greater say over the running of rail services and road schemes.
Ministers are now challenging cities to tell them what they want from a wider package of powers that they want agreed by the next Budget in March, before discussions begin with other areas.
Cities Minister Greg Clark has signalled cities with an elected mayor will have a better chance of securing additional powers. A referendum on whether a Boris Johnson-style figure should run Newcastle is due in May.
David Wood, chairman of the Tyne and Wear integrated transport authority, which oversees Nexus, welcomed any transfer of powers from Whitehall.
But he stressed they should be handed to his existing authority because the structures were already in place and reflected how transport services were used by Newcastle residents and those in the surrounding area for work and leisure purposes.
"If the Government is serious about public transport, then start devolving the powers locally. In Tyne and Wear, we would love to have the same authority that TfL has over the franchising of the buses in London," said the Labour councillor.
Mr Clegg will make the announcement in a speech to a conference organised by the IPPR North think tank in Leeds today.
Other parts of the package being unveiled by Mr Clegg include a pledge of an end to cities having to go on "bended knee" to Whitehall departments to bid for cash from different pots of money for individual projects.
Cities would instead get one consolidated capital pot to use as they see fit to boost economic growth – whether that is on a new roundabout or a retail park.
