Introduction

English devolution has made swift and steady progress since the introduction of the de- volution white paper late last year. This labour government, under many other manifesto commitments, promised to give local people control of their regions, and a profound shift in power away from Westminster and to those with ’skin in the game’, aiming to rebalance prosperity across the country We have covered previous announcements as the government made steps towards devolution. Namely, this occurred during the labour party conference last year, where Angela Rayner announced a ’devolution revolution’. Devolution has a storied history, the foundation of devolution in the modern age began in Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland and London in the late 1990s. Aside from this, there were further developments, including mayoral devolution such as in other major urban areas like Manchester, Birmingham, Leeds and Liverpool. The goal of the devolution white paper outlined the objective of ’universal coverage in England of strategic Authorities’, the government recognises that devolution policy as it stands is currently ad hoc and inconsistent, and so it is hoped a framework will be developed that would simplify and make consistent what is often an irregular landscape.^[1] All of this brings us to a new development in the landscape of devolution policy, the Devolution and Community Empowerment Bill, which aims to legislate in the spirit of devolution and localism. We have already covered some of the features of English devolution and how it may affect members, available here.

Devolution and Community Empowerment Bill

The English Devolution and Community Empowerment Bill delivers on manifesto commitment to decentralise power and ignite regional growth with powers for mayors. Speaking on the introduction of the bill, deputy prime minister Angela Rayner said: ”We’re ushering in a new dawn of regional power and bringing decision making to a local level so that no single street or household is left behind and every community thrives from our Plan for Change.” The Minister of State for Local Government and English Devolution, Jim McMahon OBE MP introduced the English Devolution and Community Empowerment Bill on the 10th of July 2025. The first reading has now passed, with the date for the second reading yet to be announced. There are a variety of provisions included within the Bill, this includes:

• Making more local ownership of pubs, shops, and social hubs easier through a new Community Right to Buy meaning communities will have the first opportunity to purchase local assets when they are put up for sale and be given an extended 12- month period to raise funding. And more local sports grounds will be saved by introducing a new ‘Sporting’ category protection of local assets preserving local character, boosting tourism, and keeping community spirit alive.
• Banning Upward Only Rent Reviews (UORR) clauses in commercial leases, which pit landlords against businesses and can make rents unaffordable and cause shops to This will help keep small businesses running, boost local economies and job opportunities and help end the blight of vacant high streets and the unacceptable anti-social behaviour that comes with them.
• A stronger voice for communities with a new requirement for local authorities to put in place effective neighbourhood governance to give residents more of a say in shaping their local areas.
• Quicker action on the changes local people want to see with more rights for Mayors, elected by their communities, to take back control of delivering for their voters, from new licensing powers for rental e-bikes to new planning powers to set the direction of growth across their areas.
• Boosting economic growth with mayors working across the country to turbocharge the national missions by developing tailor made Local Growth Plans to kickstart local economies and ultimately getting more money in people’s pockets.
• Streamlined powers for Mayors across England to speed up the development of new homes and infrastructure in their areas. This will include a new power to institute Mayoral Development Orders, as well as a streamlined process to establish Mayoral Development Corporations, so that we can replicate the success of projects such as the Olympic Park legacy and attract inward investment right across the country.
• Restoring taxpayers’ trust in councils’ spending through fixing the local audit system with the establishment of the Local Audit Office, which will increase transparency, simplify and streamline the system.^[2]

Stakeholder Comments

Various stakeholders, particularly those who represent local authorities and other as- sociated authorities, including the Local Government Association (LGA) and the Local Government Information Unit (LGIU). Jonathan Carr-West, Chief Executive of the LGIU stated in response:

”This Bill improves the process for devolution as it currently exists, but the jury is still out on whether it enables a significant deepening of devolution which remains in our view the real prize.

There is no real fiscal devolution in what we’re seeing today. There is no real clarity on how coterminosity with other public service geographies is to be achieved. There is no detail on how Strategic Authorities will work with new unitaries to push public service reform. And there is no recognition of the importance of councils in delivering all this.

Devolution to the English regions has been a long and torturous journey. This is a positive step along the road but it’s not mission accomplished.”^[3] Councilor Louise Gittins, Chair of the LGA, also said in response: “It is critical that the full breadth, diversity and capability of local government is recognised and all councils are enabled to play a meaningful role as partners and, where appropriate, as part of strategic authorities in driving growth, improving services, and improving the lives of our residents.

“Councils across the country are deeply invested in and vital to the success of English devolution. We will respond in more detail on behalf of local government when we have analysed the Bill further.”

Devolution, Anti-social Behaviour and Community Safety

Of course, devolving powers to local areas and fundamentally changing English governance have a plethora of wide-ranging effects. Community safety, and more specifically anti-social behaviour, is not unique in this respect. English devolution has impacted the police, in Greater Manchester devolution deals have expanded into areas of public ser- vice expenditure, notably the elected mayor now takes on role of the Police and Crime Commissioner and getting control of the £6 billion local NHS budget. According to the police foundation, ”The second implication of these devolution deals is that they are producing a mixed economy of police governance. Whereas it had been assumed that the Police and Crime Commissioner model was here to stay, it is in fact being transformed by the devolution process. In some of the big metropolitan areas (Greater Manchester, West Midlands and Leeds for example) the new elected mayor looks set to take over the powers of the PCC, as happened first in London.”^[4] Devolution therefore has a principal change in that it can change the landscape of accountability, power and governance.

Devolution can also foster economic growth, particularly to regions that previously lapsed behind that of London and the south east; positive economic growth and a rise in socioeconomic status has a positive correlation to crime and disorder.^[5] Devolution is recognised as a key economy lever by many organisations, including the Institute of Government.^[6] Community tensions are also at an all-time high, and by ’empowering communities to play a much strong role in local decisions making’ it perhaps signals a positive step to continue to foster and promote civic pride, particularly on regions that feel ’left behind’. Devolution could signal a positive step towards positive community engagement. More devolved areas can also have their say on what is needed for their region. Of course, the devolved parliaments of Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales are a different landscape to that of local English devolution, however the strength of some of these devolved nations to carry through legislation that deals with pertinent issues, such as in Northern Ireland with the newly introduced dilapidation bill, which aims to prevent the negative impact of dilapidated buildings, which can potentially attract anti-social behaviour.^[7] We have previously outlined successful case studies of devolution in action, for instance at the Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA) and West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA), we will reiterate some of these examples that highlight the reality of devolution. Funding can be a major contributor to the success of devolution projects, as a new tool available to a mayor would be to increase the funding available to the police, until the year 2017/18 most police forces had seen substantial cuts in government grants, which constituted a large portion of their service revenue. The Greater Manchester Mayor, therefore, had full advantage, and raised funds equivalent to £12 per year for a Band D household, which generated an additional £8.8m. Last year, Dr Gareth Young from the UK collaborative centre for housing evidence (CaCHE), explored what was the new ‘trailblazer programme’ of devolution deals for both the Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA) and West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA).^[8] These deals, and therefore subsequent powers, gave them control over budgets, and eliminated the need to bid for individual pots of money from different government departments, in what WMCA mayor Andy Street penned as the ‘begging bowl culture’.^[9] This will also mean that GMCA will have more flexibility to work with Homes England to identify sites for affordable housing and to work and partner with providers. Multi-agency working will appear to be more beneficial than ever, as local communities can become more empowered to challenge and direct government decision making.

Conclusion

The bill will significantly speed up the devolution process, and it waits to be seen how much impact this meaningful change to administrative, and governance democratic landscape will affect the reality on the streets of England. Devolution is yet another one of the government’s headline initiatives to restore trust, foster civic pride and regenerate local economies. The Devolution and Community Empowerment Bill looks to be a significant introduction to the policy process, and we wait to see it is further details so we can evaluate its impact on, in particular, our local authority members.

For any more information on this issue, or any other policy related inquiry, please contact: Harrison Box, Policy Officer

This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

References

“English Devolution and Community Empowerment Bill: Guidance”. Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, 2025, https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/english- devolution-and-community-empowerment-bill-guidance/english-devolution-and-community- empowerment-bill–guidance.

Haynes, Jane. ’Begging bowl culture must end’ - Conservative Mayor Andy Street blasts Levelling Up snub. Birmingham Live, 2023.

“LGIU Response: Devolution and Community Empowerment Bill”. Local Government In- formation Unit, 2024.

Muir, Rick. Variable geography: the implications of devolution for policing in England. Vol. Available at:https://www.police-foundation.org.uk/2015/12/variable-geography-the- implications-of-devolution-for-policing-in-england/. The Police Foundation, 2015.

Muir announces legislation to tackle dilapidation. Vol. Available at:https://www.daera-ni.gov.uk/news/mui announces-legislation-tackle-dilapidation. Department of Agriculture, Environment / Rural Affairs, 2025.

“Policy Paper: English Devolution White Paper”. Ministry of Housing, Communities and

Local Government Available at:https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/english-devolution- white-paper-power-and-partnership-foundations-for-growth/english-devolution-white-paper (2019).

Thomas Pope, Maelyne Coggins, Grant Dalton. “How can devolution deliver regional growth in England?” Journal of TeX 15 (May 2023): 3–6.

“UK COLLABORATIVE CENTRE FOR Housing Evidence: A multidisciplinary partnership between academia, housing policy and practice.”, Available at:https://housingevidence>

^[1] Policy Paper: English Devolution White Paper”, Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Govern- ment Available at:https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/english-devolution-white-paper-power-and- partnership-foundations-for-growth/english-devolution-white-paper (2019).

^[2] English Devolution and Community Empowerment Bill: Guidance”, Ministry of Housing, Commu- nities and Local Government, 2025, https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/english-devolution-and- community-empowerment-bill-guidance/english-devolution-and-community-empowerment-bill–guidance.

^[3] LGIU Response: Devolution and Community Empowerment Bill”, Local Government Information Unit,

2024,

^[4] Rick Muir, Variable geography: the implications of devolution for policing in England, vol. Avail- able at:https://www.police-foundation.org.uk/2015/12/variable-geography-the-implications-of-devolution-for- policing-in-england/ (The Police Foundation, 2015).

^[5] Piotrowska, Patrycja J., Christopher B. Stride, Simone E. Croft, and Richard Rowe. 2015. “Socioeconomic Status and Antisocial Behaviour among Children and Adolescents: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.” Clinical Psychology Review 35 (1): 47–55. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cpr.2014.11.003.

^[6]Maelyne Coggins Thomas Pope Grant Dalton, “How can devolution deliver regional growth in Eng- land?”, Journal of TeX 15 (May 2023): 3–6.

^[7] Muir   announces    legislation    to    tackle    dilapidation,    vol.    Available            at:https://www.daera-

ni.gov.uk/news/muir-announces-legislation-tackle-dilapidation (Department of Agriculture, Environment / Rural Affairs, 2025).

^[8] UK COLLABORATIVE CENTRE FOR Housing Evidence: A multidisciplinary partnership between academia, housing policy and practice.”, Available at:https://housingevidence.ac.uk/,

^[9] Jane Haynes, ‘Begging bowl culture must end’ Conservative Mayor Andy Street blasts Levelling up snub (Birmingham Live, 2023)