Cheshire and Warrington could be set to receive more powers from the government after being confirmed as part of the devolution priority programme (DPP).
It means that the region’s outlined plans to set up a Combined Authority and hold mayoral elections in May 2026 have been accepted by government and leaders in Cheshire said this was “good news” for residents, communities and businesses across the region.
Devolution is about national government transferring powers and resources away from London and into regions. Individual councils would retain their current responsibilities and continue to provide services for local people.
The recently launched English Devolution White Paper highlights the government’s position on giving Strategic Authorities the appropriate powers and levers to maximise their impact on public health and the government’s health and growth missions.
The Devolution bill will enable and individual mayor to be elected in in Cheshire and Warrington to promote economic, social, and environmental aims and convene stakeholders with a corresponding duty on public authorities to respond. It would go hand in hand with a duty to collaborate with constituent Local Authorities and neighbouring Strategic Authorities in delivering areas of competence including:
- Transport and local infrastructure
- Skills and employment support
- Housing and strategic planning
- Economic development and regeneration
- Environment and climate change
- Health, wellbeing and public service reform
- Public safety
What does the bill mean for health and wellbeing in Cheshire and Merseyside?
While there is a specific reference to health and wellbeing, it is also clear that all of the other areas of competence listed above have an impact on health and wellbeing and are the social determinants of health that are crucial to population health and health equity over decades.
With regard to the specific powers and reasonability on health and wellbeing, the bill states that the new Strategic Authorities will have a key role to play in taking action, particularly on the social determinants of health, through the exercise of their functions, in areas such as transport, housing, and planning.
To support Strategic Authorities to be active leaders in this space and drive a “health in all policies” approach, the government is introducing a new bespoke duty in relation to health improvement and health inequalities.
This is a significant development and one that the public health leaders in Cheshire and Warrington are looking to grasp and develop a health improvement and health inequalities duty that is unique to the area.
Speaking in a BBC News article, Councillor 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 had this to say:
“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.”
There is a new dedicated website for the devolution of Cheshire and Warrington engaging with residents and businesses to find out what it could look like here: www.cheshireandwarringtondevolution.com
