Three policy priorities for Sheffield City Region

The Centre for Cities think tank has outlined what the new Sheffield City Region metro mayor should prioritise when they take office in May this year.

Sheffield and Rotherham have been identified by the government as two of 28 local authorities in breach of the EU limits for NO2, and must come forward with a final Clean Air Plan by December 2018. The briefing argues that, as a quick-win policy, the mayor should tackle air quality in the region and introduce a Clean Air Charge to reduce pollution and fund greater active travel alternatives.

Looking more long-term, the metro mayor could also introduce a Clean Air Charge, similar to London’s Toxicity Charge, on more polluting vehicles entering the most congested and polluted parts of the city region and take advantage of the powers in the Bus Services Act 2017 to introduce franchising of routes, and invest revenues from the Clean Air Charge into supporting and improving this network.

Additionally, the metro mayor should also develop a spatial plan to boost the city region’s commercial centres, and to make the most of the business opportunities they offer. A spatial plan allows the metro mayor to be bold and strategic about the future growth of the city region, making best use of the land available, especially within its city centres. It also provides a clear signal to both public and private sector stakeholders the approach that will be taken to development in the area, increasing certainty.

As a long-term vision, the mayor should take action to address the skills deficits across all ranges in the city region. This will include improving the skills of those with few or no qualifications to improve their chances of employment and the city region’s attractiveness to business investment, and then evaluating the outcomes of policies to refine future policy approaches to make them more effective.

Andrew Carter, chief executive of Centre for Cities, said: “The new metro mayor of the Sheffield City Region will have a unique opportunity to make a big difference on the issues that matter most to people’s day-to-day lives, such as housing, skills and transport. However, he or she will also face significant challenges, from establishing the mayoral office in the face of opposition from some quarters locally, to acting on his or her campaign pledges and preparing the city region for Brexit. To make a success of the role, it’s vital that the mayor acts quickly to address the most pressing issues that the city region faces.”