Row Erupts As Ministers Refuse To Give Metro Mayors Tax Rebates In Devolution Drive

Contributing sentiments towards policy:

51% : " She added: "Mayors don't have the ability and won't have the ability under these plans to set income tax rates at a regional level ... "Those kind of schemes necessitate HMRC to set up full schemes.
49% : In his push for devolution, the prime minister promised that "more of the taxes raised in a community will stay in that community" in plans to be outlined in his autumn Budget.
48% : Tory mayor Ben Houchen said: "Doesn't sound much like devolution to me?" Andy Burnham's new plan to offer metro mayors a greater proportion of income tax to spend on their local communities has already hit a stumbling block.
48% : "To my knowledge, Ben hasn't developed a rebate scheme and it's not in their gift to set income tax or business rates.
44% : " The Conservatives also expressed concerns over the plan, as shadow local government secretary James Cleverly said it would just lead to higher taxes.
41% : Just an excuse for a tax grab.
40% : "But his top-down Manchesterism will lead to higher taxes, with no guarantee of better outcomes for local people.
39% : He wrote: "So devolution means getting people's taxes to spend but not being allowed to give it back to them.
37% : "The government's own figures show areas without a strategic mayor are already receiving a fraction of the funding available to mayoral authorities and adding income tax powers on top of that would make a bad situation worse.

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