Have your say on the proposals for a Combined Authority

Redcar and Cleveland Borough Council have provided the following information about the public consultation on the proposal for a Combined Authority:

Five local councils (Darlington, Hartlepool, Middlesbrough, Redcar & Cleveland and Stockton-on-Tees) are asking for your views on proposals to form a Combined Authority for the area covered by the above Councils. There is a package of information available on the Councils website which is available by clicking on here.

This includes:

·           A consultation document

·           Some frequently asked questions

·           A draft governance review

·           A copy of the 9^th December 2014 Cabinet report

·           Press releases

·           Video

This sets out what the Combined Authority would do and what the local councils would continue to do. In summary, the Combined Authority would focus on economic growth and our ambition to create 25,000 new jobs for the area and would NOT recreate the former Cleveland County Council. We would like to hear your views on our proposal. So, please complete online questionnaire by no later than 31st January 2015. There is space for your own wording too. Alternatively, you can complete the survey online:

Once the consultation period has closed we will report the conclusions of the consultation to all five councils no later than March 2015. If feedback is supportive, we intend to formally ask each Borough Council to approve our ‘scheme’ in March, which is when we have to submit our proposal to the Secretary of State.

The Secretary of State will then carry out further consultation before placing an ‘Order’ before both Houses of Parliament. Because of the General Election in May 2015, this is likely to mean that the earliest chance to have the Order approved before both Houses of Parliament would be Autumn 2015.

Ian Swales MP secures flooding meeting for Residents

Following the devastating flooding around the Borough of Redcar and Cleveland in September 2013, Redcar MP Ian Swales has been pushing hard for residents to get answers from the responsible authorities.

Since the flooding, the council has been promising the take action to reduce the risk of future flooding. Northumbrian Water, SSI, the Environment Agency and local social housing providers also have a part to play.

A meeting has been arranged for Thursday 11 December from 6.30pm at Sacred Heart School, Redcar. All authorities will be represented and will be telling residents about the work they’ve been doing and their plans for the future.

All residents are welcome.

Commenting, Ian Swales said:

“It has been 10 months since I last arranged a public meeting and since then I have been pushing the authorities to take action and come up with a long term plan.

“The council has been promising the results of a hydrology study since March and it’s now time that they report the findings back to residents. I’ve been saying since day one that this will require drastic action and I now want to see it happen.”

Liberal Democrat Deputy Council Group Leader and Parliamentary Candidate for Redcar Constituency, Councillor Josh Mason said:

“Despite pressure from myself and Ian the council seem to have made little progress and seem to be hoping people will forget about the flooding last year.

“I have seen first-hand the devastating effects of the flooding on local residents and now want to see the relevant authorities come forward with a long-term plan that will reduce the risk of us ever having to experience anything like that again.”

Pictured: Ian Swales (left) and Josh Mason (right) in Marske visiting residents affected by flooding.