Andy MacNae MP on why Lancashire needs a mayor now

Phil Riley, leader of Blackburn with Darwen Council, has been making the case for a Lancashire mayor for years.

So has Mo Isap, who chairs the Lancashire Business Board.

And so have I.

Lancashire is the only part of the North of England with no elected mayor and no agreed route to getting one.

Greater Manchester and the Liverpool City Region have had mayors for nearly a decade.

Cumbria is getting one.

On the map of the North, we are the gap, and it is a gap that is costing us real money.

The original six mayoral strategic authorities now each get more than £500 million a year in devolved funding.

And whilst it takes time to get to that position, even the newest mayoral areas get more than £30m a year right from the kick-off.

Consider what could be achieved across the county with that extra money alongside the power of a mayor to direct it where it’s needed.

In Rossendale and Darwen, I have been fighting to improve our transport networks.

Buses that connect Darwen properly, at the times people actually need them.

Rail that gets people from Darwen to Bolton and Manchester for work, quickly and reliably.

And over the hill, a station at Rawtenstall with a commuter service into Manchester, because Rossendale is still the only local authority area in the North with no commuter rail service at all.

We are making real progress, but these projects are exactly the kind of things a mayor could help deliver.

Mayoral areas get long-term transport funding, so they can plan years ahead rather than bidding for one pot at a time.

Across the border, that is how Greater Manchester has been able to build the Bee Network.

Our most important transport links run across the boundary into Greater Manchester, and cross-border projects need a partner on each side.

I am meeting with the Mayor of Greater Manchester, Bev Craig, to see how she can support our campaign for a commuter train service.

If we also had a mayor, they would be able to meet up and coordinate with our neighbours a lot more often.

In my meetings with government ministers, I push for Rossendale and Darwen to get what we need.

Sometimes that means asking for improvements across Lancashire.

Mayors also meet with ministers regularly, and a Lancashire mayor would be able to advocate for these wider projects in their meetings.

That would give me more time to focus on getting results for our area specifically.

So if we had a mayor, we would get more money, be much better placed to push for the infrastructure we need, and have a seat at the table making all the big regional decisions.

The Government is encouraging us to have a mayor and has put the money on the table.

Lancashire businesses want a mayor.

The leaders of Blackburn with Darwen and Blackpool councils have made clear their support, as have borough council leaders.

So what on earth is the hold-up?

The answer is Lancashire County Council and its leader, Councillor Stephen Atkinson, who also chairs Lancashire’s combined authority.

For reasons that I can’t even begin to understand, he is using every trick in the book to try and frustrate the process.

He has claimed that there was “no money on the table”.

But last month Jim McMahon, the minister responsible for devolution, came to County Hall to meet Lancashire’s leaders, including Councillor Atkinson.

The figure on offer for a mayoral deal was around £35 million a year for 30 years: more than £1 billion, with decisions on how to spend it made here in Lancashire rather than in London.

That is just a baseline from which we can build towards the sort of multi-billion-pound deals that Manchester now has.

On top of that, around £20 million could come up front, so we would see the benefit straight away.

So the truth is that there is a lot of money on the table.

Money that we need!

Councillor Atkinson also claimed the administration costs of having a mayor would be a burden on Lancashire taxpayers.

But this year, combined authorities with a mayor received between £2.2 million and £2.8 million to cover their running costs.

Lancashire without a mayor received just £250,000.

So his claim has no foundation.

Councillor Atkinson knows all this, and yet he is still dragging his feet, changing his position every time we seem to be getting close.

Every month without a deal is another month of investment going elsewhere, and Lancashire has watched that happen for long enough.

Our county shouldn’t be held back because one man can’t make a decision!

So my message is a simple one, and it comes with an open hand.

Step up for Lancashire, Stephen.

Agree the principle without caveats or impossible conditions, and I will work with you, with the leaders of Blackburn with Darwen and Blackpool, and with every Lancashire MP who wants this, to get Lancashire back onto the fast track.

By this time next year, I’d like us to be talking about what a Lancashire mayor will do for Rossendale and Darwen’s roads, buses and trains, not still arguing about whether we should have one.