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24
Mar
The first mayor of York and North Yorkshire will be in charge of multi-million pounds of devolved money, have powers over transport and skills and be tasked with banging the drum for the county.
Six candidates from around North Yorkshire have put their names forward to campaign for the position.
But, despite an election being just six weeks away, enthusiasm for the mayor among the public appears low.
Part of this may be down to a lack of understanding over what a mayor does, how they make decisions and who will scrutinise them.
This week, the Stray Ferret spoke to James Farrar, director of economy and interim head of paid service at York and North Yorkshire Combined Authority, to clear up some of those questions.
James Farrar
The mayor will have their own priorities, which they will be responsible for. But any decision will be put before the combined authority board.
For example, should the mayor want to set up a mayoral development corporation — which is an organisation set up to regenerate a defined area — it would need to be put before the board for approval.
The board itself will be made up of leaders and deputy leaders from both Conservative-controlled North Yorkshire Council and Labour-controlled City of York Council.
Any decision would need to be made by simple majority, but the mayor has to be on the “winning side”.
This, Mr Farrar says, will prevent any one side from “ganging up” on each other.
He said:
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