English Devolution and Community Empowerment Bill

Last updated

English Devolution and Community Empowerment Bill
Coat of arms of the United Kingdom (2022, variant 1).svg
Parliament of the United Kingdom
Long title A Bill to make provision about combined authorities, combined county authorities, the Greater London Authority, local councils, police and crime commissioners and fire and rescue authorities, local audit and terms in business tenancies about rent
Introduced by Angela Rayner (Commons)
Territorial extent England and Wales
Other legislation
Amends
Status: Pending
History of passage through Parliament

The English Devolution and Community Empowerment Bill, also known as simply the English Devolution Bill or as the Take Back Control Bill, is a UK Government bill which will establish a new framework for devolution of powers to local government and combined authorities in England. [1] [2]

Contents

Background

Powers were devolved to varying degrees to Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland by Tony Blair's Labour government in the late 1990s through the establishment of the Scottish Parliament, the Welsh Parliament and the Northern Ireland Assembly. A devolved legislature and government was not created for England, which remained under the full jurisdiction of the United Kingdom parliament and government based in Westminster.

A strategic local authority for Greater London, known as the Greater London Authority (GLA), was established in 2000. Plans for elected regional assemblies in the eight English regions outside Greater London were abandoned following an unsuccessful referendum held in the North East region in 2004. Instead, sub-regional combined authorities were gradually established after the Conservatives came to power in 2010, starting in 2011, under the terms of the Local Democracy, Economic Development and Construction Act 2009 and Localism Act 2011.

Initially, combined authorities were led by boards of local authority leaders. The Cities and Local Government Devolution Act 2016 allowed for the creation of directly elected mayors to lead combined authorities. Further competencies were granted to combined authorities by the Levelling-up and Regeneration Act 2023. By May 2024, eleven combined authorities had been established in England, with additional proposals in development. Combined authority leaders and the mayor of London regularly meet UK government ministers through the Mayoral Council for England and the Council of the Nations and Regions, which were established in October 2024.

In 2023, the Labour Party under Keir Starmer pledged to introduce a "Take Back Control Bill" in its first term if it returned to power, which would devolve more powers to regional and local authorities in England on issues such as housing, transport, employment support, energy and childcare. [3] [4] [5] Starmer pledged that this bill would be detailed in Labour's first King's Speech, and after its victory in the 2024 general election, plans by the Labour government for this bill, now officially named the English Devolution Bill, were outlined in the King's Speech at the State Opening of Parliament in July 2024. [6] [7] [8] [9]

White Paper

The English Devolution White Paper published in December 2024 (click to read all pages) English Devolution White Paper.pdf
The English Devolution White Paper published in December 2024 (click to read all pages)

An English Devolution white paper was published on 16 December 2024, outlining key provisions expected in the English Devolution Bill. [10] [11] [12]

Proposals

Structural changes to local government

Jim McMahon, Minister for Local Government and English Devolution, wrote to the following two-tier authorities in February 2025 to set out a timetable for reorganisation proposals to be submitted: an interim plan by 21 March 2025 and a full proposal by 28 November 2025. The letters included guidance that proposals should seek to establish one or more single-tier authorities per area, with a "sensible geography which will help to increase housing supply and meet local needs" and with a rough population of 500,000 or more, including evidence of local engagement activity. [18]

Combined areas

Devolution is expanding to newly created combined authorities. [19] [20]

Several were accepted onto the Devolution Priority Programme, which also included Local Government reorganisation and delayed elections: [21]

Bill

The Bill was introduced on 10 July 2025 by Angela Rayner, Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government. It was also renamed again, taking on the title of English Devolution and Community Empowerment Bill. [22]

According to the Observer, the legislation is steeped in the ideology of the Co-operative Party. [23]

As introduced

References

  1. ↑ "King's Speech 2024 – English Devolution Bill". PolicyMogul. 17 July 2024.
  2. ↑ Seddon, Paul (15 July 2024). "Key points in King's Speech at a glance". BBC News. Retrieved 17 July 2024.
  3. ↑ Morton, Becky (5 January 2023). "Keir Starmer embraces Brexit slogan with 'take back control' pledge". BBC News. Retrieved 18 August 2025.
  4. ↑ Norris, Emma (6 January 2023). "Keir Starmer sets out a vision – but taking back control will require details". Institute for Government. Retrieved 18 August 2025.
  5. ↑ Stacey, Kiran; Crerar, Pippa (5 January 2023). "Starmer vows to let communities 'take back control' in Labour's first term". The Guardian. Retrieved 18 August 2025.
  6. ↑ "The King's Speech 2024". GOV.UK. 17 July 2024.
  7. ↑ Riley, Rebecca (17 July 2024). "King's Speech: Universities hold the key to realising the aims of the 'Take Back Control Bill'". University of Birmingham. Retrieved 18 August 2025.
  8. ↑ Calkin, Sarah (8 October 2024). "Ministers must set out what devolution is for". Local Government Chronicle. Retrieved 18 August 2025.
  9. ↑ Courea, Eleni (11 July 2024). "UK ministers preparing king's speech containing at least 30 bills". The Guardian. Retrieved 18 August 2025.
  10. ↑ "Deputy Prime Minister launches first-ever Mayoral Council". GOV.UK (Press release). 10 October 2024.
  11. ↑ Carey, Adam (30 October 2024). "English Devolution White Paper to set out how councils will "move to simpler structures", Autumn Budget reveals". Local Government Lawyer.
  12. ↑ "English Devolution White Paper : Power and partnership: Foundations for growth".
  13. ↑ "Devolution White Paper: On-the-day factual briefing | Local Government Association".
  14. ↑ "Host of councils reportedly set to be axed in local government restructure". Insider Media. 25 November 2024.
  15. ↑ Moore, Henry (25 November 2024). "Labour to abolish 'dozens' of councils in biggest reform for a generation". LBC.
  16. ↑ Williams, Jennifer (2 December 2024). "Can England's new breed of mayors help fix its left-behind regions?". Financial Times.
  17. ↑ Webb, Caitlin (3 December 2024). "Devolution white paper 'by the end of the year'". Local Government Chronicle.
  18. ↑ "Local government reorganisation: invitation to local authorities in two-tier areas". GOV.UK.
  19. ↑ "Four devolution agreements signed off and others progressing". GOV.UK. Retrieved 18 January 2025.
  20. ↑ "Political bunfight beckons over future of Worcestershire councils". BBC News. 12 January 2025. Retrieved 18 January 2025.
  21. ↑ "Devolution revolution: six areas to elect Mayors for first time". GOV.UK. Retrieved 7 February 2025.
  22. ↑ "English Devolution and Community Empowerment Bill enters Parliament". Irwin Mitchell. 10 July 2025. Retrieved 22 August 2025.
  23. ↑ Neilan, Catherine (5 July 2025). "Why the Co-operative party is Labour's best shot at stopping Reform's rise". The Observer . Archived from the original on 5 July 2025. Retrieved 14 July 2025.
  24. ↑ "English Devolution and Community Empowerment Bill" (PDF). parliament.uk. 10 July 2025. Retrieved 10 July 2025.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.