A multi-billion pound devolution deal to create a new North East mayor is finally on the verge of being sealed – and a late twist has seen County Durham issued an ultimatum if it wants to come back into the fold.
Negotiations have been taking place for months to hash out plans for a new combined authority covering Newcastle, North Tyneside, Northumberland, Gateshead, Sunderland, and South Tyneside, governed by a mayor who would be elected in May 2024. A devolution deal securing in excess of £3bn in government funding over 30 years and potentially creating more than 17,000 jobs has been close to being announced for some time, but progress was held up by the collapse of Boris Johnson’s government.
But the Chronicle now understands that a final draft of a proposed deal has now been fixed and could be approved shortly by the incoming Liz Truss administration and local councils. And, in a major new development, Durham may be set to join the deal too, with a leaked letter revealing that county leaders have been issued a deadline of mid-October to get on board.
