A BOLD bid to retain all business rates could make Hampshire and Isle of Wight the master of its own destiny.

The proposal is included in a ‘Devolution Bid’ prospectus submitted to central government on behalf of 15 councils, two local enterprise partnerships and two national park authorities – among them Hampshire County Council, East Hampshire District Council (EHDC), and the South Downs National Park Authority.

But it hasn’t been plain sailing. Having signed off the first phase of the bid process, district council leader Ferris Cowper has made it clear that it is only after aspects of the bid, felt to be damaging to East Hampshire, have been removed or diluted.

Should it be successful, according to a joint statement, the ambitious nature of the devolution deal and number of partners involved mean it could become a blueprint for cities and regions across the country to follow.

In return for foregoing revenue support grants from central government, the document asks to keep 100 per cent of business rates generated in the area.

The move would reduce Hampshire and the Isle of Wight’s dependency on money from central government and put greater impetus on the partners involved to boost the success of businesses in the region.

If this comes to fruition, the area will be responsible for its own income and therefore need to make sure it attracts businesses and has the conditions for them to thrive in order to generate funds.

Hampshire County Council, Isle of Wight Council, Portsmouth and Southampton City Council and 11 district councils are working together on the project along with the Solent and Enterprise M3 Local Enterprise Partnerships and New Forest and South Downs National Park authorities.

The bid has also received the support of Hampshire Constabulary, Hampshire Fire and Rescue, and NHS England Wessex.

Hampshire and Isle of Wight’s proposals focus around four key themes: boosting business and skills for work, accelerating housing delivery, investing in infrastructure, and transforming public services.

Within these, projects will deliver on the government’s productivity plans and ensure more homes are built, more efficient local planning, further expansion of broadband, better mobile connectivity, improved transport connections, a higher-skilled workforce with employers setting the skills agenda locally, and higher employment and better wages.

Plans for homes include accelerated delivery of existing local plans, as well as an additional 500 homes a year in the priority home categories of rural affordable, low-cost starter, council new-build and extra care, by making use of exception sites including redundant public land.

Until it is confirmed what central government would award to Hampshire and Isle of Wight it is not possible to say what structure the devolved arrangement would take, but rather than creating a new layer of government the aim is to bring existing decision making powers from Whitehall down to a local level.

Furthermore the partners will work to deepen devolution locally and seek opportunities for district and parish councils to take on extra functions and develop services with communities.

However, in a statement last week, Ferris Cowper was far from upbeat, claiming that while the balance of requests and concessions may sound exciting, the majority view of the 44 councillors in his council felt it may not offer much to East Hampshire.

He said that while EHDC had agreed to stay in the project for the time being, where it would have a chance of influencing the outcome in East Hampshire’s favour, this was on the proviso that any concessions that were positively damaging to residents and business within EHDC were removed from the bid document. And this had been achieved.

Mr Cowper was sceptical about the bid to retain 100 per cent of business rates, pointing out that at present 84 per cent of the rates EHDC collects (£29m), is sent to the Government, nine per cent to Hampshire County Council and six per cent is retained by EHDC.

“Under the bid proposal, business rates will be consolidated across Hampshire and the Isle of Wight and 96-and-a-half per cent will remain with the Government because it compensates for the loss of these government grants. After subtracting these existing grants, only three-and-a-half per cent would remain with local councils to spend as they wished. So, not the windfall expected,” he said.

In addition, said Mr Cowper, EHDC had lobbied successfully against the formation of a combined authority which would become another level of local government, and one that could raise additional council tax and employ a permanent staff. And it had removed a proposal for subsidiary bodies to control housing and planning, and secured a commitment to the primacy of local plans.

While the bid has some attractions, such as improved infrastructure, public transport and superfast broadband, Mr Cowper points out that many of the aspirations are already under way in East Hampshire.

Following the submission of Hampshire and Isle of Wight’s devolution prospectus, central government is expected to make a decision on the proposals this year.