Government opens public consultation on Suffolk and Norfolk devolution plans

Why it matters: Devolution will profoundly affect your daily life – from how your bus services run to what skills training is available, from housing developments to healthcare improvements.

The decisions made under this new structure will impact you far more directly than national changes like Brexit, so it's essential to understand what devolution is and how it will affect you.

The big picture: If approved, the Combined County Authority would receive devolved funding from central government and a 30-year investment fund and many powers would be transferred from Westminster to a Combined County Authority of Suffolk and Norfolk.

• The Norfolk and Suffolk Combined County Authority would be led by a directly elected mayor plus four representatives – two each from Norfolk and Suffolk County Councils – starting next May.

• They will decide how funding is spent across Norfolk and Suffolk, including transport, skills, housing and economic development.

How will Suffolk be split: It has yet to be decided how the new combined authority will be divided.

• Initially, it was mooted that Suffolk could be split into two unitary councils – East Suffolk and West Suffolk – which critics argue would have disastrous consequences for Ipswich, diluting its voice even further as it tried to compete with rural Suffolk and Norfolk for investment.

• But Ipswich Borough Council recently announced that all main political parties were behind plans for a third "Greater Ipswich" unitary council.

• Felixstowe and Woodbridge councils remained open to the idea, but the chair of Kesgrave Council immediately rebuffed the idea, telling the media that he and the people of Kesgrave wished to remain independent.

Then what: If approved, the Mayoral Combined County Authority would:

• Become the Local Transport Authority, with powers to improve bus services

• Receive devolved adult skills funding to tailor training to local job markets

• Have strategic planning powers and funding for housing delivery

• Gain a stronger voice nationally through membership on the Prime Minister's Council of Nations and Regions

What they're saying: "This consultation seeks views, particularly from interested parties, including those who live and work across Norfolk and Suffolk, on the effect of establishing a Mayoral Combined County Authority in the area," states the consultation document.

What's next: Following the consultation, the Secretary of State will consider all responses and decide whether to establish the authority. If approved, and it's improbable it won't be, the necessary legislation would be laid in Parliament.

The bottom line: Devolution will dramatically change how our town, county and region are governed so residents are encouraged to exercise their right to share how local decision-making powers are structured across the two counties for decades to come.

You can have your say here.