County Council opts not to join combined authority

Warwick Councillor Izzy Seccombe said: “Warwickshire is a great place to live, work and raise a family, our employment rate is the highest it has been since 2007 and over the last two years we have seen unemployment drop to the lowest levels ever recorded in the county - almost half that of the national average. Within the CWLEP area the total number of apprenticeships has increased over the last four years to 2,780 and we have also seen a huge boom in job creation.

“We see no material, or other benefits, from becoming part of Greater Birmingham which would result in another tier of bureaucracy in the form of a Metro Mayor, paid for from our already stretched budgets which will inevitably mean a surcharge on the council tax bills for every home in Warwickshire, which no one wants."

Cllr Seccombe added that she believes Warwickshire has too much to lose by joining the West Midlands Combined Authority such as the Warwickshire Police Force and the county’s fire service.