Transport authorities welcome Lyons' devolved powers proposals

26 March 2007

Sir Michael Lyons has proposed a sub-regional framework to devolve more powers to local authorities, enabling them to implement recommendations made in the Eddington and Barker reports.
In his long-awaited inquiry into local government, Sir Michael called on the Government to give powers to local authorities to regulate bus services ‘as soon as practicable’, and outlined proposals to give LAs power over some strategic roads currently managed by the Highways Agency.
He recommended a framework, manifested in the development of Multi Area Agreements, in which proposals for sub-regional working were determined locally, but tested against a set of expectations set by the Government. But he downplayed city regions and their elected mayors. These recommendations, he said, would be particularly important for transport, especially regarding bus services – ‘one area where both local and central government currently have limited capacity to influence activity and provision’.
Echoing Sir Rod Eddington in his transport study, he cited the success of bus services in London, where regulation remained, but also pointed to improvements in other areas of the country where bus operators and local authorities benefited from effective working relationships.
Other responsibilities managed at sub-regional level, as recommended by Eddington and Barker, could include: roads currently administered by the Highways Agency; resources and land currently administered or owned by Communities England; allocation of some proportion of current regional transport funding; and powers and revenues allocated to local authorities in relation to road pricing. Sir Michael endorsed Kate Barker’s recommendations to pursue devolution and clarification in the planning system through a new national planning authority, as outlined in her Review of land use planning.
However, the new arrangements should apply only to issues of unambiguously national importance, and local communities should be kept informed and given an opportunity to contribute. Sir Michael also proposed powers for local authorities to charge for domestic waste collection, in order to create incentives to help LAs meet their LATS targets and manage costs.
Welcoming the report, Cllr David Wood, chair of the Passenger Transport Authority Special Interest Group, said: ‘Sir Michael Lyons is right to emphasise that new bus powers promised by Government to PTAs should be brought in as soon as possible.’ Other proposals unveiled include an end to council tax capping, revaluation with extra bands, and a supplementary business rate.

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Transport authorities welcome Lyons' devolved powers proposals

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