Member

Amendment 177 seeks to require the Secretary of State to obtain the written consent of all affected mayors and strategic authorities before taking a decision on the devolution framework following a pilot scheme. As I outlined previously, it would not be right for an individual mayor or strategic authority to prevent the Government conferring or modifying a function for a whole class of strategic authority. After consulting all the relevant authorities and people, the Secretary of State is best placed to decide which functions best sit at which level. Providing any area with a veto could limit the expansion of the devolution framework over time and hold back opportunities and prosperity for other areas in England.