North Yorkshire Council looks set to pay an additional £1 million to set up a combined authority for the county and York.
The combined authority, which will be headed by an elected mayor, is scheduled to be launched in November this year.
It will include councillors from North Yorkshire Council and City of York Council and make decisions on matters such as economic development and transport.
So far, North Yorkshire Council has footed £582,000 worth of costs for consultation and staff redeployment to help set up the combined authority.
In a report due before a joint devolution committee next week, the council will be recommended to fund a further £1 million in costs ahead of its implementation in four months time.
The money would cover areas such as IT infrastructure, project management, human resources and contingency plans.
However, the council has said that it expects the cash to be paid back once government funding for the combined authority is released.
It said:
“North Yorkshire Council will continue to cash flow the implementation and set up costs of the combined authority on the understanding that these costs will be repaid once funding is released on creation of the combined authority in November.”
Councillors will discuss the funding at a meeting on July 24.
What is a combined authority?
A combined authority is a body set up for two or more councils to make joint decisions.
In this case, North Yorkshire Council and City of York Council would come together to make decisions on matters such as economic development and transport.
Read more:
- Conservatives select highways councillor Keane Duncan to stand for North Yorkshire mayor
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It will be a separate body to North Yorkshire Council and City of York Council.
The closest example of this is West Yorkshire Combined Authority, which recently has led on the £11.9 million Harrogate Station Gateway scheme, as well as similar schemes in Skipton and Selby.
The combined authority would be headed by a mayor who is directly elected by the public.
An election for the Mayor of York and North Yorkshire is set to be held in May 2024.
The Conservatives selected Cllr Keane Duncan, the executive member for highways and transportation at North Yorkshire Council, at a meeting on Friday.
