WHAT WILL NEW GREATER LINCOLNSHIRE AUTHORITY MEAN FOR BRIGG?

FROM NORTH LINCOLNSHIRE COUNCIL

The Government has today agreed a devolution deal that will see Whitehall powers devolved to a new Greater Lincolnshire combined authority comprising ten councils across the whole of Lincolnshire, covering an area of one million people from the Humber to the Wash. 
The deal is expected to create 29,000 jobs, 100,000 new homes and attract £450m in the next 30 years – helping boost the Greater Lincolnshire economy by £8bn.
The new authority would play a pivotal role in key decisions that are currently handled by the Government.
The funding and responsibilities will include transport, housing, skills training and flood risk management. There will also be more regional decision-making on health, care, court and prison services. 
The aim is to ensure local accountability, making the new body answerable to the population of Greater Lincolnshire.
The combined authority would continue to work closely with the Humber and Greater Lincolnshire Local Enterprise Partnership for the benefit of the whole region.
An elected Mayor would oversee the work of the new combined authority – a key part of all devolution deals across the country. Elections are expected to take place in May 2017.
The combined authority will receive £15m a year (£450m over 30 years) to boost growth. On top of this, there is a guaranteed share of the money available nationally for transport – at current levels, that would bring in £23m a year.
The existing councils will remain with their existing responsibilities.
Each council now needs to formally agree the deal at their full council meetings, following consultation with residents during the summer.
Cllr Liz Redfern, leader, North Lincolnshire Council and spokesperson for Devolution Governance, said: “This deal will put the ‘Great’ back into Lincolnshire, where all councils will work together to benefit the region. This means more business opportunities, more jobs, investment, new homes and so on.
“The new Greater Lincolnshire combined authority will give us a platform to decide what is best for our region. After all, between the ten councils, we have that local knowledge needed to help decide what our area needs and we will be able to deliver with confidence.
“There will be less bureaucracy, decisions will be made much faster and it will unite the wider Lincolnshire area.
“Combined, we will be a much bigger force, with greater powers to deliver what’s needed locally.”
The ten councils that will form the new Greater Lincolnshire combined authority are:

• North Lincolnshire Council
• North East Lincolnshire Council
• Lincolnshire County Council
• City of Lincoln Council
• North Kesteven District Council
• South Kesteven District Council
• West Lindsey District Council
• East Lindsey District Council
• Boston Borough Council
• South Holland District Council

N.F. ADDS: More regional decision-making on courts leads us to wonder whether we might perhaps be able to get magistrates' hearings in Brigg once again. Flood risk management could obviously include our own River Ancholme. The election in May 2017 should be interesting. Who will stand to represent our area?