'A historic day' - North East council leaders sign 'trailblazer' devolution deal

A historic 'trailblazer' devolution deal that will bring more than £100million worth of new funding to the North East has been signed by the region's council leaders.

The council leaders of County Durham, Gateshead, Newcastle, North Tyneside, Northumberland, South Tyneside and Sunderland all gathered alongside Levelling Up minister Jacob Young on Monday, March 18, to sign the deal.

Along with funding for the North East, the historic deal will see a mayor for the new North East Mayoral Combined Authority (NEMCA) elected in May.

Today's signing builds on the original devolution deal that was signed by the seven council leaders in December 2022, which established NEMCA.

The second deal will give local leaders new tools to allow them to drive growth and deliver better services to meet the needs of their communities.

It will see the North East receive £37m of funding for the remediation of brownfield sites and regional projects - with £25m earmarked for the new Crown Works film and TV studios which is set to be built on Sunderland's Riverside.

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Funding will also go to Newcastle University's regeneration of Newcastle's general hospital site and for maintenance of the Tyne and Wear Metro transport system.

Following the signing at Durham University's St Chad's College, Levelling Up minister Jacob Young hailed what is a historic day for the North East.

He commented: "It absolutely is a historic day for the region, we've signed this devolution deal today which means £1.4billion of investment coming into the North East over the next 30 years.

"It is an opportunity for the whole of the North East to elect a new mayor who will be there champion.

"We've seen how effective regional mayors can be so this is a really opportunity for the North East to have their own loud champion for this fantastic region."