Combined authority area

A combined authority is a type of local government institution introduced in England outside Greater London by the Local Democracy, Economic Development and Construction Act 2009.

There are currently nine such authorities, with the Greater Manchester Combined Authority established on 1 April 2011, four others established in April 2014, two in 2016 and two more in 2017. Combined authorities are created in areas where they are considered likely to improve transport, economic development and regeneration. Combined authorities are created voluntarily and allow a group of local authorities to pool appropriate responsibility and receive certain delegated functions from central government in order to deliver transport and economic policy more effectively over a wider area.

Following the abolition of metropolitan county councils and the Greater London Council in 1986, England had no local government bodies with strategic authority over the major urban areas of the country. In 1999, following a successful referendum, the Labour government created a strategic authority for London (the Greater London Authority), but no bodies were established to replace the metropolitan county councils outside London. The Blair government instead pursued the idea of elected Regional Assemblies, although following an unsuccessful referendum in 2004 in the most positive region – the North East – this idea had few proponents. The idea of city regions was proposed subsequently.

In October 2010 the Coalition Government introduced measures to replace Regional Development Agencies, which were described as inefficient and costly. They were replaced with local enterprise partnerships, voluntary groups with membership drawn from the private sector with local authority input.

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