The Leader of the Opposition and Liberal Democrat Group on Oldham Council, Councillor Howard Sykes MBE, has pledged the support of Oldham Liberal Democrats for the Fair Deal Devo campaign launched by the Manchester Evening News, Bolton News, Wigan Evening Post and Oldham Evening Chronicle.

Cllr Sykes: “Although the Chancellor has talked a lot about devolution and about the fabled Northern Powerhouse, the Government has yet to prove that it is sincere in its intention by offering a fair funding deal for Greater Manchester.”

“Liberal Democrat Councillors in Greater Manchester are ready and willing to accept the challenge and responsibility of devolution to make our region still Greater, but we need to have the cash to make it happen.  This is why we welcome and are backing the Deal Devo campaign.”

The Oldham Liberal Democrat Group has been calling for fair transport funding for the region to close the gap between London and Greater Manchester, and is opposed to further Police and local authority funding cuts and the government proposals to close both of the borough’s courthouses.

Cllr Sykes added: “Devolution represents an exciting opportunity for local authorities across Greater Manchester to work together to transform the lives of the region’s residents and to make service improvements that reflect local needs and that create local jobs.  But it will not work if Government money does not follow the transfer of power, and we will not accept any attempt by Government to merely pass on responsibility for carrying out difficult cuts.”

The Oldham Liberal Democrats are firmly committed to seeing transparency in the work of the new Combined Authority – where all the Greater Manchester councils work together using the devolved powers and budget.

“It isn’t enough just to tell people what’s going on.  The new Combined Authority will be assuming responsibility for a massive devolved budget amounting to many billions of pounds and will be taking on board new areas of work affecting the lives of millions of people.”

“The Liberal Democrats do not believe in telling people what we will do and then doing it for them.  We want to actively involve Greater Manchester residents in making the decisions that affect their lives and in shaping the services that their taxes pay for.  And we want to work with people and communities to deliver those services more effectively and in a more responsive and accountable way.”

“So we want information to be in plain English, and available on-line and on demand, and we want all meetings to be open to the public and to be webcast so taxpayers can call their representatives to account.  That’s real democracy and that’s what as Oldham Liberal Democrats we aspire for in the new structure for the Combined Authority.”