Proposed metropolitan devolution could pave the way for the next generation of ‘Smart Cities’ in England, according to international legal practice Osborne Clarke.
Following November’s announcement of Greater Manchester’s devolution deal with the Treasury, creating a new elected ‘Metro Mayor’ in return for greater financial powers, plans have also been revealed to devolve budgetary power to Liverpool and more recently Leeds and Sheffield.
Leading law firm Osborne Clarke, which operates in real estate, technology, energy and transport, believes that greater autonomy in the regions could unlock the potential for technology and infrastructure investments to create Smart Cities.
The firm’s Bristol roots saw it at the forefront of railways in first industrial revolution in the 19th century and it is acutely aware of the momentum towards metro devolution in its spiritual home.
Bristol’s first elected metro Mayor George Ferguson has recently stated that devolved tax powers would be vital to the economic growth of cities across the UK.
Osborne Clarke’s CEO Simon Beswick said: “Devolution could offer a fresh injection of momentum, or ‘devo-smart’ to the Smart Cities agenda. We are already seeing a glimpse of what can be achieved through the Government’s proposed HS3 northern rail links.
“Allowing individual cities to identify and focus investment on the specific, localised infrastructure challenges could accelerate the development of Smart Cities. It’s proven that smarter urban connectivity, sustainability, data and transport make for a more appealing environment for people and business, increasing public revenue – so if barriers can be overcome the long term rewards could be enormous.
“But disparities between various metro tax-bases and budgets could cause imbalances in the speed that different cities can tackle localised smart infrastructure challenges.
On the surface devolution will offer cities fiscal independence – but in reality all will have to cooperate on new, unprecedented levels if the already sizable barriers to smart infrastructure are to be overcome.”
Even Manchester, the most powerful of the proposed devolved economies, currently experiences a £5 Billion spending gap between the money it earns and the money it spends, with the majority of funding provided by more than 50 different central bodies spent on responsive public services, rather than the long-term investment needed for smart city projects.
Simon continues: “It’s a stark example that while London introduced the highly successful Oyster Card mass transit scheme in 2003 as a Private Finance Initiative (PFI), with overwhelming approval from customers, 17 years down the line the system has failed to materialise in other UK metropolitan regions with large-scale integrated transport systems, such as Manchester.
“Plans to devolve responsibility for transport more locally, including control franchises, service routes, frequencies and fayres, could offer a tremendous opportunity, and Manchester has already stated it will commit to an Oyster card-style ticketing system post ‘Devo-Manc’.
“But the question must be asked: ‘How can Manchester share technical and financial knowledge with Sheffield and Leeds and versa so that smart solutions such as Oyster are adopted more quickly?’ Could cities even license PFI solutions and sell them on to other devolved cities?”
Simon concludes: “This is a once in a lifetime opportunity for these cities to tap into smart technologies, set a benchmark for the rest of the UK and help them compete on a global scale.”
