Council Leader to give evidence to parliamentary committee

The Leader of Selby District Council is to give evidence to a parliamentary panel on the topic of devolution and collaboration between local authorities.

Cllr Mark Crane (Con, SDC Brayton) will visit the Houses of Parliament on Tuesday, 24 January, where he will discuss collaborations between Selby District and North Yorkshire County councils as part of their 'Better Together' project.

The select committee is a cross-party panel of MPs and peers that aims to promote the interests of district councils, supporting closer working with central government and raising awareness of the opportunities for districts in shaping the evolving local government agenda.

Cllr Crane will give a short presentation before taking part in a question and answer session. Representatives selected from other local authorities will also attend the event, which was chaired by Mark Pawsey MP.

Cllr Crane explained, “It’s been an honour to have been invited to address the parliamentary select committee to talk about the significant savings the Better Together project has brought – over £1.3 million saved in the first three years of the project.

“Working closely with others and better integrating services where this improves customer service or delivers efficiencies has helped us deliver these savings. Our partnership with the county council has delivered real and lasting benefits to both sides involved and, importantly, to people living and working in our area. ”

Areas the Selby Council leader will be keen to highlight include a £20,000 annual saving by both council's sharing a single phone system, saving more than £50,000 by issuing a joint print and copying contract and more than £100,000 being saved in a new joint finance function.

The parliamentary select committee session will be broadcast online at parliamentlive.tv.