Hull and East Yorkshire devolution deal to be put to local residents

People in Hull and East Yorkshire will have eight weeks to have their say on the proposed devolution deal

Proposals for devolution and an elected mayor for Hull and East Yorkshire should be put out to a public consultation, councillors have agreed.

If approved, the plans would see a new mayor given control over funding for housing, job creation and public transport, including bus franchising.

An eight-week consultation will now get under way on 2 January, East Riding and Hull City councils have said.

If given the go-ahead, the new mayor and authority could start in May 2025.

The new Mayoral Combined Authority would get more than £13m a year to invest in Hull and East Yorkshire.

There would be additional funding of around £25m for investment in flood defences, public transport, affordable housing and to develop the local economy, the government said.

It also included a "commitment to rail electrification between Hull and Sheffield, and Hull and Leeds, integrating East Yorkshire into the Northern Powerhouse Rail network".

Hull City Council leader Mike Ross said the deal would "help meet the needs of the city and East Yorkshire"

Mike Ross, Lib Dem leader of Hull City Council, said he was pleased the proposed deal was going to public consultation.

"This means they will, rightly, have their chance to have their say on what is on offer," he said.

"In January, people will be asked whether they support the devolution deal that brings new investment, extra jobs and more homes to the region.

"While Hull has been a forgotten city for so long, this deal provides new opportunities for residents in Hull and the East Riding.

However, the city's Labour opposition has described the deal as a "grubby plan".

A party spokesperson said: "Labour doesn't believe that another layer of local government is what the people of this area want or need, especially as we are being shoehorned into one during the fag-end, dying days of a failed Tory government."

Bus franchising could be introduced across the region if the devolution deal gets the go-ahead

But Anne Handley, Conservative leader of East Riding of Yorkshire Council, described the possible devolution deal as "a huge step forward".

"Devolution would bring hundreds of millions of pounds into our region, and give us the power to decide how to spend it, instead of having those decisions made in Westminster.

"Other regions all around us are already reaping the benefits, and we can't afford to miss out any longer.

"I urge everyone in the East Riding and Hull to back this deal and help us deliver a brighter future of our region - one where we are in control of our own destiny."