Earlier this month, the UK Government unveiled the English Devolution and Community Empowerment Bill—a landmark piece of legislation that promises to reshape the governance landscape across England.
The Bill introduces a coherent framework for devolution, replacing a patchwork of regional arrangements with ‘devolution by default’, where every region in England benefits from a “Strategic Authority” with significant devolved powers and a directly-elected Mayor.
What are the ambitions of the Bill?
The Bill is the centrepiece of a broader “devolution revolution” that will shift significant powers and responsibilities down to regional Strategic Authorities and give Mayors a critical role in major policy and project decisions in their areas. These new competences include:
- Economy and Growth
- Housing and Planning
- Transport and Infrastructure
- Energy and Climate
- Health and Wellbeing
- Skills and Employment
To find out more about new powers for Strategic Authorities, read our briefing note here.
The politics – and what happens next
When Parliament returns from recess, the Bill will begin its passage through the House of Commons with a debate on the key principles led by Communities Secretary Angela Rayner and Local Government Minister Jim McMahon. We expect the legislation to be passed quickly.
Ahead of the implementation of the Bill, the Government has confirmed that elections will be held in May 2026 for four new Strategic Authorities (Hampshire and the Solent, Norfolk and Suffolk, Brighton and Sussex, and Greater Essex.
In both main parties, there is an expectation that Reform UK will in a strong position to win some of all of these four new Strategic Authorities in May 2026. Cavendish will be releasing polling and projections later this year.
In a move which many have suggested is an attempt to prevent Reform UK gains, the Labour Government has decided to change the voting system for Strategic Authority Mayors from First-Past-the-Post to the Supplementary Vote from May 2027 onwards. Thus far, new Strategic Authority elections under this system have been confirmed for Cumbria as well as Cheshire and Warrington.
Negotiations remain ongoing with other regions of England to deliver new Strategic Authorities in May 2027 and May 2028, to ensure that a devolved institution is in place for every region of England. For further updates, subscribe to our Devolution Digest email update here.
How will the Bill change engagement?
As power and regional decision-making flows to Strategic Authorities over everything from spatial planning to new rail infrastructure and local energy planning, the importance of robust and proactive engagement with Mayoral Authorities will only grow.
Going forwards, success in many areas will depend on building the right relationships and influencing emerging policy with the Strategic Authority – whether that’s the delivery of a major development proposal or roll-out of Government initiative such as the Compute Strategy, Skills England, or the Industrial Strategy.
And it’s not just the Mayors themselves. At each Strategic Authority, new Commissioners appointed by the Mayor will be given policy portfolios to lead for their region – and these will become key figures for ongoing engagement.
With its integrated Planning and Government Relations teams, as well as its deep bench of regional experts, Cavendish is well-placed to support your ambitions with local, regional, and national decision-makers.
