Kent could be heading towards having an elected mayor in some of the biggest changes of local government in more than half a century.
A statement released immediately after the government delivered the Budget detailed 10 devolution agreements for mayoral strategic authorities across the country, said the Local Democracy Reporting Service.
Medway Council leader Vince Maple welcomed the announcement “of a new strategic authority for Kent and Medway which I am hopeful will include a new Mayor for our region”.
“Mayors can deliver so much for local people: Transport, regeneration and communities that work for everyone in the region,” he said.
Kent and Medway is not listed as a mayoral authority – just as a “strategic authority”.
Kent County Council leader Linden Kemkaran welcomed the announcement, saying an elected mayor “has the potential to unlock additional powers and investment on housing, transport, infrastructure, skills and economic growth, exactly where it’s needed here in Kent”.
However, Antony Hook, leader of the Liberal Democrat Group at Kent County Council, said the government’s announcement created “far more questions than it answers”.
He said it left local governance in “limbo with vague caveats” and called on the government to provide immediate clarity on what they propose for Kent.
“The people of Kent do not want another remote, costly, and unnecessary tier of political bureaucracy imposed from Westminster in the form of a single, all-powerful mayor. Real devolution should empower our existing local councils and communities, not concentrate power into the hands of one individual,” he added.
The government statement states the process of reshaping local government in the county will take place by 2028.
