Principle 2 - Unlocks the benefits of devolution

This section sets out how our proposal for reorganisation will unlock devolution for Surrey, with the establishment of a Mayoral Strategic Authority by April 2027. Led by the Mayor of Surrey, this new authority will deliver economic growth and prosperity by leveraging devolved powers across the county’s three new unitary authorities. This structure will enable a coherent and strategic approach to planning for growth across Surrey's distinct economic clusters.

Although reorganisation (the reconfiguration of Surrey’s local government landscape) and devolution (the transfer of powers and funding from Westminster to local leaders) are distinct processes, together they lay the foundations for growth and prosperity. It is therefore vital that our proposal for reorganisation paves the way for the timely and seamless establishment of a Mayoral Strategic Authority for Surrey.

Led by the newly created Mayor of Surrey and covering the footprint of the existing county area, our proposal is that elections to this post should first occur in May 2027, with the Strategic Authority coming into existence at the same time as the new unitary councils are vested in April 2027.

Bringing together the mayor with the leaders of the new unitarity authorities as champions of their respective residents, businesses and distinct economies, the Surrey Strategic Authority will be able to take the vital macro and strategic decisions necessary to help to foster growth across Surrey.

Surrey is well-placed to be amongst the first areas nationally to benefit from devolution and from the wholesale transfer of power from Whitehall to local leaders. Not only are we undertaking reorganisation at the fastest pace anywhere in England, the devolution of power to local leaders is already underway, thanks to the county deal Surrey secured that will see some adult education, housing and regeneration powers being devolved locally from 2026.

Held on the same geography as the new Surrey Strategic Authority, the effective use of these new powers rely on collaboration between the existing county council and districts and boroughs (for example, in their role as local planning authorities); this collaboration can continue as the shadow unitary authorities are elected in May 2026 and vested in April 2027.

On 1 April 2027, these new powers will be vested to the Surrey Strategic Authority, complemented by the devolution of further powers in areas such as infrastructure and transport planning to support growth across the breadth of the strategic geography.

In line with precedent elsewhere, like the West of England and West Midlands where strategic authorities are already in place, the Surrey Strategic Authority will be led on an interim basis for just over a month by the unitary council leaders, until elections for the new Mayor of Surrey are held in early-May 2027. The interim period will be entirely during the pre-election period, limiting the decisions that can be made during this short, but necessary, transition period. Once elected and with their own democratic mandate, the new mayor will work together with local council leaders to deliver their priorities and help foster economic growth.

It is expected that, at the conclusion of the Police and Crime Commissioner for Surrey’s term of office in May 2028, the powers and responsibilities of this role would also be assumed by the Mayor of Surrey.

Whilst the population of Surrey (1.2 million) is below the government’s 1.5 million population target for Strategic Authorities, the White Paper recognises in some places this may not be met. However, Surrey’s economic and social geography significantly differs from all neighbouring areas, with the county’s current boundaries providing a cohesive identity that brings together Surrey’s varied and distinct local communities, that are also coterminous with most other public sector boundaries.

With a GVA of over £51bn, Surrey’s local economic potential is significant. The new Surrey Strategic Authority would be the sixth largest authority of its kind in England, contributing around the same to the British economy as Northern Ireland. Establishing a Strategic Authority using the current county footprint therefore places the strategic geography in the best possible position to harness the opportunities presented by LGR and devolution to secure sustainable and long-lasting economic growth.

Our proposal for three unitary authorities best positions the new Surrey Strategic Authority to unlock economic growth across the geography. With the new unitary authorities able to take a coherent and strategic approach to planning for growth, the new Strategic Mayoral Authority will be in the strongest possible position to focus on using its devolved powers to deliver on the national mission of growth, ensuring a strategic regional approach to skills, transport and planning.

Two unitary authorities for Surrey would be too distant from the rich tapestry of communities each serves to provide meaningful place leadership. As will be discussed below in Principle 4 (community empowerment) in more detail, evidence elsewhere has demonstrated that local community networks or boards cannot replicate this need for coherent empowered local leadership.

Furthermore, a two-unitary model not based on functional economic areas will bake in economic incoherence and conflicting incentives for growth. By creating local authority boundaries that split up functional economic areas, local leaders could be perversely incentivised to make strategic policy decisions that, whilst benefiting their authority, are to the detriment of growth and the wider economic prosperity of the region. Not only will this mean that the new authorities are not able to plan as effectively for growth as a three-unitary model, but it will also undermine the effectiveness of a new Mayoral Strategic Authority as it will have to first compensate for the lack of coherent planning at a local level for growth before it can then use its devolved powers effectively. This matters, as research by Metro Dynamics shows that where transport investment and economic collaboration has been working in Greater Manchester for the longest, productivity has also improved.[1]  A three-unitary model will stimulate and embed meaningful collaboration, providing the best possible basis for devolution.  A two-unitary model will add complexity and make devolution harder and slower and would complicate and dilute its impact, undermining the potential for sustainable economic growth that this once-in-a-generation opportunity brings.

Similarly, if there were only one unitary authority, such an authority would be unable to effectively represent and foster conditions that catalyse local economic growth across the strategic geography, continuing the status quo and not supporting sustainable economic growth in the future.

By creating three new unitary authorities whose boundaries align with Surrey’s distinct economic clusters, we are ensuring that Surrey is in the best possible position to deliver devolution and local growth ambitions, for the benefit of residents across the strategic geography. Fostering growth will require a system wide approach, and our boundaries are well placed to do this, with coterminous alignment with other public sector boundaries such as Surrey Police’s Divisions and almost complete alignment with parliamentary boundaries, themselves independently developed by the Boundary Commission for England based upon local ties and identities.[2]

As research by the Economy 2030 Enquiry has demonstrated, focusing on ensuring the functional economic area works as a whole to support firms and workers is the key to unlocking growth.[3] This is a key feature of successful places across the UK and globally. They make effective use of investment and human capital have clear features, with different parts of economic areas playing distinct roles: they provide locations (usually clustered around town centre) where large volumes of high-value activity can cluster; they deliver high rates of return on capital; and that is underpinned by access to a deep pool of skilled labour in the area which provides attractive places to live and fast connections to those productive areas.  A three- unitary model – which is based on functional economic areas – would enable alignment around a coherent economic strategy to deliver this; such close alignment would not exist in a two-unitary model for Surrey.

The size ratios between the proposed local authorities, set out below, ensure that the new councils are well balanced.

With each of the new unitary authorities being formed around the county’s three district economic clusters, the new councils will be empowered to make the strategic decisions that best suit the communities, residents and businesses that they serve. As a result, the new Mayor of Surrey, working collaboratively with new council’s leaders, will be able instead to focus their attention and resources upon the macro strategic issues that require a cross-county solution, champion Surrey on the national stage and deliver major projects and infrastructure in synergy with local leaders.