Antonia Jennings, CEO at Centre for London, comments on the English Devolution White Paper:

“The English Devolution Bill announced today is set to move us towards a redistribution of power between Westminster and sub-regional government – a vital step needed to increase democracy, economic success and ensure public services are most efficiently delivered.

Currently, prior to this Bill entering law, England is one of the most centralised countries of all OECD countries. London retains a mere 7% of the taxes it raises, significantly below New York who retain 50%. Further, despite New York’s and London’s populations being comparable, New York’s economy is double ours – it is likely England’s centralisation contributes to this discrepancy. It’s clear London – alongside other Mayoral Combined Authorities (MCA) – still lacks the fiscal autonomy to make long-term decisions.

This is set to change in the coming months, with a few MCAs receiving a single integrated settlement. This is a single funding pot, which enables the MCA to prioritise and strategically allocate funding, moving us closer to the much-needed fiscal autonomy within sub-regional government.

The new English Devolution White Paper sets out the parameters for fiscal devolution. But these needs to be granted to the capital. And soon. The only way to adequately resource sub-regional government, whilst bringing control closer to the people, is through fiscal devolution.”