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I agree the 16-19 stuff is pretty knotty, and devo could mean many different things in that space. Your example would be bad, a strategic/accountable mayoral role could simplify things a lot. Waiting for the details!

Relatively, yes! Talk to any MSA and they would say it was, relative to the adult skills system before, and relative to other skills and employment policy areas

Want to keep up with the biggest reshaping of the UK state in decades? We've got a 'Devolution Hub' to keep you informed that will be regularly updating over the coming weeks and months: www.centreforcities.org/devolution/

Devolution - Centre for Citieswww.centreforcities.org

And the important underlying announcement - resource will follow. Tax retention will do some of this, but important to have the right skills and people to deliver at the local level. Announcement rightly highlights that capacity building is a crucial part of this project.

(on devolution's role in delivering urban infrastructure and skills and employment support - expect some Centre for Cities work soon!)

Skills: The focus on more devolution of 16-19 and employment support is the right focus, bringing them more in line with adult skills (a devolved success story). Both are complex, patchwork, and top-down which means many slipping through the cracks. Devo could rationalise and align a lot of this

Greater control over big transport schemes is important too, as mayors look towards delivery of new infra. This (e.g., devolved TWAOs) combined with the extra fiscal firepower suggests a whole systems approach to unlocking urban investment. Though would require changes to national infra planning too

Transport: Greater local control for rail would fill in the missing piece of truly integrated urban transport networks, expanding opportunities to >1m across the country. If GBR is shaped with this in mind (as signalled here), this could genuinely transform connectivity in our big cities:

All aboard for growth: Why rail reform is incomplete without rail devolution for England’s big cities - Centre for CitiesThis briefing sets out how rail reform can fill in the missing piece of the integrated transport puzzle that would better connect 1.2 million more people in England’s six largest urban economies outsi...www.centreforcities.org

If you were in any doubt this was a policy focused on growth:

Income tax retention is huge, as it means when mayors grow their economies, they get to keep a portion of the rewards instead of it being siphoned off to Westminster. The more they focus on growth, the more they get to invest in their place. See our briefing on this from last month:

Fiscal devolution for England - Centre for CitiesThis briefing provides evidence to support the Government’s decision to advance fiscal devolution and explains how it can use these reforms to achieve both higher growth and greater fairness across th...www.centreforcities.org

And here's a helpful explainer on the powers the new mayor will have at their disposal (published today!) www.centreforcities.org/publication/...

Understanding England’s mayors: The powers they have and the role they can play in delivering devolution - Centre for CitiesThis briefing explains what powers mayors in England have and how they vary across the country.www.centreforcities.org

Here's why the election matters beyond the M60: www.centreforcities.org/blog/the-gre...

The Greater Manchester mayoral by-election matters beyond Manchester - Centre for CitiesThe Greater Manchester mayoral by-election at the end of July could prove to be one of the most important political contests of the next few years.www.centreforcities.org

Didn't make it into this piece, but I agree! Reducing private traffic should be a key priority for GM's integrated transport strategy, as set out in this blog a couple of weeks ago (we've also got one on active travel in big cities coming out soon)

Slow buses: Big cities should take note of TfL’s answer to London bus speeds - Centre for CitiesTfL’s road strategy shows why road powers are central to improving London bus speeds and big city transport.www.centreforcities.org

Join us in 10 minutes (!) for our primer on the the subject with the indomitable Tony Travers: 👇

Designing fiscal devolution for growth and fairness - Centre for CitiesWith a Government roadmap expected later this year, this event explores how fiscal devolution can be designed to support both economic growth and fair funding across England.www.centreforcities.org

With all the chat about more local powers: what is fiscal devolution and how could it be a radical reform for the shape of the UK economy? We've got a handy briefing on why it matters and the 5 tests that it must pass to be designed for fairness and growth: www.centreforcities.org/publication/...

Why do our big cities matter for regional imbalances? And what are the ingredients for their success? Our BIG CITIES OUTLOOK report sets out scale of the 9 largest places outside London and their importance for 'growth in every postcode': www.centreforcities.org/publication/...

Listen here:

City Talks: The inclusive growth debate - Centre for CitiesAndrew Carter is joined by Rob Johnson, Senior Analyst, and Neela Parker-Talwar, Researcher, to discuss the current debate on growth and inclusion in big cities.www.centreforcities.org

We'll be doing lots more on skills and labour markets this year - interested to see where this Review takes the discussion and whether cities are a serious component

5. Physical infrastructure matters. Housing and transport are cross cutting themes limiting young people from accessing opportunities. Our work shows this is a big city problem. Most gains to be made there.

Integrated transport: The size of the prize for mayors - Centre for CitiesThis report sets out the connectivity and economic impacts for city regions integrating their public transport networks.www.centreforcities.org

If the wage floor and other pressures are to reach a tipping point, it is young people in already struggling places that will feel the effects first. Given the government's commitments to regional growth, there's a big risk to equating absence of evidence with evidence of absence