A Welsh council leader has labeled reports of a shared mayor with English councils as false, emphasizing legal and governance issues.
Monmouthshire: A council leader in Wales has shot down rumors about a ‘metro mayor’ overseeing areas in both England and Wales. He called the claims “false.”
This all started when the UK Government announced plans to shake up local governance in England. They want to create new regional mayors, similar to those in Manchester and West Yorkshire.
Some reports suggested that Monmouthshire and Powys might team up with English counties like Herefordshire and Shropshire. But Powys council leader James Gibson-Watt quickly dismissed this idea.
He stated that such governance across borders wouldn’t be legally possible. Gibson-Watt responded to a request from Plaid Cymru’s Elwyn Vaughan, who wanted assurance that a metro mayor wasn’t being considered.
Vaughan pointed out the report from Mail Online and expressed concerns about the implications of such a move, calling it a waste of resources and showing ignorance of the devolution settlement.
In his reply, Gibson-Watt clarified that the Marches Partnership is just an informal collaboration of four separate councils, each with its own governance. There are no plans for a formal authority that would cross the Welsh and English divide.
When the rumors first came out, Monmouthshire County Council also denied them, stressing that local governance in Wales is managed by the Welsh Government.
A spokesperson mentioned that the UK Government’s reforms are only for England, and the Welsh Government handles its own local authority powers.
Angela Rayner, the deputy prime minister, proposed changes to streamline England’s two-tier council system. Meanwhile, Wales has had single unitary authorities for nearly three decades.
These proposed changes would give regional mayors more control over key areas like housing and education, which could lead to conflicts with the Welsh Government’s responsibilities.
