'Devolution would allow us to make more decisions'

The three councils said they are seeking an elected mayor for the county

The three councils in Cheshire have asked the government for a devolution deal which would include an elected mayor.

Cheshire East, Cheshire West and Chester, and Warrington Councils have written to the devolution minister and said they are committed to working with the government on establishing a mayoral strategic authority for the region by May 2026.

The three authorities began initial discussions last year.

The government set Friday as the deadline for councils to apply under the devolution priority programme.

The letter is from Louise Gittins, leader of Cheshire West and Chester Council, Warrington Council leader Hans Mundry and Cheshire East Council's leader Nick Mannion and deputy leader Michael Gorman.

"It's clear that devolution would bring significant power and funding to the Cheshire and Warrington region," they wrote.

"We're ambitious for our region and we want to seize this opportunity to benefit our residents, communities and businesses.

"Devolution would allow us to make more decisions here in Cheshire and Warrington, rather than decisions about our region and its almost one million residents being made in London."

The councils said it would seek views from residents, communities and businesses before any agreement was made with the government, and any devolution deal would need to be agreed by each council and the Cheshire and Warrington joint committee.

Some areas of the country are seeking to postpone elections while devolution talks are ongoing, but there are no elections taking place in Cheshire this year.