Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Combined Authority | |
---|---|
Type | |
Type | |
Houses | Unicameral |
Term limits | None |
History | |
Founded | 3 March 2017 |
Leadership | |
Structure | |
Political groups |
|
Elections | |
Directly elected mayor since 2017 | |
Last election | 6 May 2021 |
Next election | 1 May 2025 |
Meeting place | |
Pathfinder House, St Mary’s Street, Huntingdon, PE29 3TN | |
Website | |
https://cambridgeshirepeterborough-ca.gov.uk |
The Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Combined Authority is a combined authority covering the ceremonial county of Cambridgeshire in the East of England. The authority was established on 3 March 2017. The authority is led by the directly elected Mayor of Cambridgeshire and Peterborough.
Plans for a combined authority covering the entirety of East Anglia, including Norfolk and Suffolk, were announced by Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne on 16 March 2016 as part of the 2016 United Kingdom budget, with the aim of creating an "Eastern Powerhouse" analogous to the government's Northern Powerhouse concept. [1] Norfolk and Suffolk had initially submitted separate devolution bids, but government ministers called for a joint bid including all three counties. [2] [3] Initial proposals had been agreed by all county and district councils in the region, with the exception of Cambridge City Council.
The East Anglia devolution deal was subsequently rejected by Cambridgeshire County Council, [4] with Peterborough City Council also opposing the deal. [5] Plans for devolution in the region were split in June 2016, with one deal for Cambridgeshire and Peterborough and a separate deal covering Norfolk and Suffolk. [6] The Norfolk and Suffolk devolution deal was later scrapped, after several district councils withdrew. [7] [8]
The devolution deal was agreed by the constituent local councils in November 2016, [9] and the first meeting of the shadow combined authority was held in December 2016. [10] The draft statutory instrument required for formal establishment of the combined authority was laid in Parliament on 23 January, made on 2 March 2017, and came into force the following day. [11]
As part of the devolution deal, the responsibilities of the combined authority will include the following: [12] [13] [14]
The combined authority is chaired by a directly elected mayor. The first election was held on 4 May 2017 for a four-year term of office, with further elections in May 2021 and every fourth year thereafter. [11] The mayor's salary has been reported to be £70,000 a year. [15] The mayor is a member of the Mayoral Council for England and the Council of the Nations and Regions.
In addition to the elected mayor, the seven constituent local councils, Cambridgeshire County Council, Peterborough City Council, Cambridge City Council, East Cambridgeshire District Council, Fenland District Council, Huntingdonshire District Council and South Cambridgeshire District Council, each nominate one member of the combined authority. The Chairman of the Business Board, which functions as the Local Enterprise Partnership for the region, also holds a seat. Substitute members are also nominated in case of absence. [16]
Name | Position within nominating authority | Nominating authority | |
---|---|---|---|
Nik Johnson | Mayor of Cambridgeshire and Peterborough | Direct election | |
Dennis Jones | Leader of the Council | Peterborough City Council | |
Lucy Nethsingha | Leader of the Council | Cambridgeshire County Council | |
Anna Smith | Council's appointed representative | Cambridge City Council | |
Anna Bailey | Leader of the Council | East Cambridgeshire District Council | |
Chris Boden | Leader of the Council | Fenland District Council | |
Sarah Conboy | Leader of the Council | Huntingdonshire District Council | |
Bridget Smith | Leader of the Council | South Cambridgeshire District Council | |
Al Kingsley | Chairman | Business Board |
Bodies that hold observer status currently include the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Clinical Commissioning Group, the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Fire Authority and the Cambridgeshire Police and Crime Commissioner. [17]
Cambridgeshire is a ceremonial county in the East of England and East Anglia. It is bordered by Lincolnshire to the north, Norfolk to the north-east, Suffolk to the east, Essex and Hertfordshire to the south, Northamptonshire to the west and Bedfordshire to the south-west. The largest settlement is the city of Peterborough, and the city of Cambridge is the county town.
East Anglia is an area in the East of England, often defined as including the counties of Norfolk, Suffolk and Cambridgeshire. The name derives from the Anglo-Saxon kingdom of the East Angles, a people whose name originated in Anglia, in what is now Northern Germany.
Peterborough, or the City of Peterborough, is a unitary authority area with city status in the ceremonial county of Cambridgeshire, England. The district is named after its largest settlement, Peterborough, but also covers a wider area of outlying villages and hamlets.
East Cambridgeshire is a local government district in Cambridgeshire, England. Its council is based in the city of Ely. The district also contains the towns of Littleport and Soham and surrounding rural areas, including parts of the Fens.
Cambridgeshire Constabulary is the local territorial police force that covers the county of Cambridgeshire and Peterborough unitary authority. It provides law enforcement and security for an area of 1,311 square miles (3,400 km2) and population of 856,000 people, in a predominantly rural county. The force of Cambridgeshire includes the cities of Cambridge, Ely and Peterborough, the market towns of Chatteris, Huntingdon, March, Ramsey, St Ives, St Neots, Whittlesey, and town and Port of Wisbech. Its emblem is a crowned Brunswick star containing the heraldic badge of Cambridgeshire County Council.
Local authority areas in England typically have an executive leader and a cabinet selected from the local council, similar to how the national prime minister and cabinet are selected from Parliament. In contrast, residents of some areas, or groups of areas known as combined authorities or combined county authorities, directly elect the executive mayors of their local government.
Peterborough City Council is the local authority for Peterborough, a local government district with city status in the ceremonial county of Cambridgeshire, England. Peterborough has had a council since 1874, which has been reformed several times. Since 1998 the council has been a unitary authority, being a district council which also performs the functions of a county council. Since 2017 the council has been a member of the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Combined Authority.
BBC East is one of BBC's English Regions covering Norfolk, Suffolk, Essex, Cambridgeshire, Northamptonshire, Bedfordshire and parts of Hertfordshire and Buckinghamshire. It is headquartered in The Forum, Norwich since 2003. It was also separated into two areas, one with the East area covering mostly in Norfolk, Suffolk & Essex, and another from the West area which covers from Cambridge, serving mostly Cambridgeshire, Northamptonshire and the three counties.
Soham railway station is a station on the Ipswich–Ely line, serving the town of Soham in Cambridgeshire. The original station operated between 1879 and 1965. It was reopened in 2021.
A combined authority (CA) is a type of local government institution introduced in England outside Greater London by the Local Democracy, Economic Development and Construction Act 2009. CAs are created voluntarily and allow a group of local authorities to pool appropriate responsibility and receive certain devolved functions from central government in order to deliver transport and economic policy more effectively over a wider area. In areas where local government is two-tier, both must participate in the combined authority.
The East of England Local Government Association (EELGA) is an association of the 52 local authorities in the East of England. It is a regional grouping of the Local Government Association and the regional employers organisation. It was established in April 2010 following the abolition of the East of England Regional Assembly.
Transport in East Anglia consists of extensive road and rail networks as well as one of England's key regional airports and the country's busiest container port. Despite having very little motorway within their borders, the counties of Suffolk, Norfolk and Cambridgeshire have modern transport links with the rest of the country.
Healthcare in Cambridgeshire was the responsibility of NHS Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Clinical Commissioning Group until July 2022. This was one of the largest in the United Kingdom.
The Cities and Local Government Devolution Act 2016 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that allows for the introduction of directly elected mayors to combined authorities in England and Wales and the devolution of housing, transport, planning and policing powers to them. The bill was introduced to the House of Lords by Baroness Williams of Trafford, the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, on 28 May 2015.
The 2017 United Kingdom local elections were held on Thursday 4 May 2017. Local elections were held across Great Britain, with elections to 35 English local authorities and all councils in Scotland and Wales.
The inaugural Cambridgeshire and Peterborough mayoral election was held on 4 May 2017 to elect the Mayor of Cambridgeshire and Peterborough. The supplementary vote system was used to elect the mayor for a four-year term of office. Subsequent elections will be held in May 2021 and every four years after.
The Mayor of Cambridgeshire and Peterborough is a combined authority mayor, first elected in May 2017. The mayor is leader of the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Combined Authority.
James Palmer is a former politician who was the first Mayor of Cambridgeshire and Peterborough between 2017 and 2021. As a councillor, he was previously leader of East Cambridgeshire District Council between May 2013 and May 2017. He was also a county councillor for the Soham and Fordham Villages electoral division of Cambridgeshire County Council between 2009 and 2017. Palmer was elected as the Conservative candidate on 4 May, 2017, however lost the subsequent 6 May 2021 election to Labour Party candidate Nik Johnson and announced his retirement from politics.
Nik Johnson is a British Labour Co-op politician and paediatrician who has served as the mayor of Cambridgeshire and Peterborough since 2021.
The Mayor of West Yorkshire is a directly elected mayor responsible for the metropolitan county of West Yorkshire in England. The Mayor chairs and leads the West Yorkshire Combined Authority, and assumes the office and powers of the West Yorkshire Police and Crime Commissioner.