The creation of a new authority with a £1.3billion investment fund for the region has reached a key milestone.
Legislation was laid in parliament earlier this week (Monday), to allow the Hampshire and the Solent Combined County Authority to be established.
Once set up in the coming months, the authority will have devolved powers from central government to focus on areas such as transport, skills and employment, housing and strategic planning, and economic development.
Councils will continue to run day-to-day services such as social care, waste management and road maintenance.
Hampshire County Council, Isle of Wight Council, Portsmouth City Council and Southampton City Council are working together to finalise the operational framework for the combined authority.
The combined authority will operate without a regional mayor until 2028 following the government’s decision to delay the inaugural election for 2 years.
Dr Ruth Adams has been appointed interim chief executive, while temporary staff are filling key roles including chief financial officer and monitoring officer.
Portsmouth City Council leader Steve Pitt said:
“Today marks an important step in granting our region the powers and investment it needs to shape our own future.
“For Portsmouth it will mean economic growth and new opportunities for residents and businesses.
“By working together, we can deliver real and lasting benefits for our communities.”
As reported by the Local Democracy Reporting Service, the devolution deal for the combined authority includes annual investment funding of £44.6 million a year for 30 years.
The government is handing down 40 per cent of the allocation – £17.84 million – for each of the 2 years before the mayor is elected.
Phil Jordan, Isle of Wight Council leader, said:
“This strategic investment gives the Isle of Wight a once‑in‑a‑generation chance to shape its own destiny.
“For the first time, we will have the resources and the influence to drive the changes our island has long deserved — better connections, new skills, good homes, and opportunities that keep our young people here.
“Through the new combined county authority, we can unlock the Island’s creativity, resilience, and community spirit like never before.
“This is more than funding; it is confidence in our future.
“Together, we can, and will, build an Isle of Wight that is thriving, hopeful and leading its own story with pride.”
The website for the combined authority is now live at hantsandsolent-ca.gov.uk
What a load of cobblers.
I sincerely hope that Mr Jordan is right.
However, I very much doubt this little island will get much of a look in. I fear the majority of focus and investment will be on the mainland, and we will be a very poor relation.
It will; it’s allocated according to need per capita. Does not require us to bid for funding.
Hampshire Solent Regional Authority?? Obviously the Isle of Wight isn’t in this so I assume we will treated separately. We are not part of Hampshire and the Solent merely marks our boundary.
Yes we are, as a combined devolved regional authority. Read the white paper.
Phil jordan says, Help I will soon be out of a job, and some professional from the mainland is going to find out what a pigs ear I have been making of running the island, I will have to move to scotland where they still reward failure and incompetance.
We couldn’t even manage to get ourselves represented in the name so I can’t see any possibility of influencing anything in our favour.
The Isle of Wight is not the same as the Solent; the Solent is the body of water that separates the Isle of Wight from the mainland of England. The Isle of Wight is the island itself, a county located in the English Channel, while the Solent is the strait that runs between the island and the Hampshire coast
Devolution is great for the island, bring it on.