Devolution in the Thames Valley region has been discussed between Oxford City Council and neighbouring local authorities through a new Mayoral Strategic Authority (MSA). The Authority may cover council districts in Berkshire, Oxfordshire, and Swindon and would localise decision-making powers which normally take place in Westminster.
Discussions are in their early stages but are thought to involve restructuring local government in Oxfordshire – combining Oxford’s six councils into one. This unified council would sit under a new Mayoral authority for the Thames Valley region led by a regional mayor whose powers would include planning, transport, skills, and energy.
This mayoral authority would emulate the cities of Greater Manchester and London whose mayors already exercise power over public transport and local services. For Oxford this will mean policy decisions about issues such as bus services will be decentralised from national government. Mayoral oversight may also extend to local policing and fire services.
Speaking to Cherwell, Oxford city councillor and Liberal Democrat group leader Dr. Christopher Smowton said that: “I do absolutely welcome devolution of powers away from Westminster.
“The most noticeable impact from a mayoral strategic authority would probably be around transport – for example, greater control over how bus services operate, or more influence over local rail initiatives like resuming passenger service on the Cowley Branch Line.”
The council’s discussion follows the UK government’s plan to devolve power-making across England through the English Devolution Bill which is currently going through parliament. The bill will establish mayoral authorities across the country and enshrine their powers in law. Ahead of the bill, the government has asked councils to envision what these new authorities will look like.
Last week, six other regions in England were fast-tracked for the creation of new mayoral authorities. These include Cumbria, Cheshire and Warrington, and Greater Essex, who will elect regional Mayors for the first time in May 2026.
Deputy Prime Minister and Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government Angela Rayner said: “We have an economy that hoards potential and a politics that hoards power. So our devolution revolution will deliver the greatest transfer of power from Whitehall to our communities in a generation.”
Councillor Chris Jarvis, leader of the Green group, told Cherwell that: “The UK is one of the most centralised countries in the world, and so the Green Party welcomes moves to devolve power from Westminster towards local communities.
“However, by forcing new mayors across the country, the government is giving with one hand and taking with the other. New strategic authorities will be given additional powers, yet these will be centralised in a single individual. That’s not what real devolution should look like.”
Other political leaders have also expressed skepticism about the government’s plans. Speaking in parliament, Conservative MP and Shadow Secretary of State for Levelling Up Kevin Hollinrake said that the Deputy Prime Minister is creating “Orwellian-sounding strategic authorities that are closer to her and closer to Whitehall, for her to use as a pawn to implement this Government’s deeply unpopular socialist agenda.
“The reality is that this is delegation, not devolution—not devolution but a clear centralisation.” Mr Hollinrake went on to say that “imposing Whitehall diktat on local people, rather than the locally led approach we [the Conservatives] followed, is prone to problems.”
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