The chancellor has confirmed that there will be a deal for Cornwall to have its own mayor in today’s Autumn statement.

Jeremy Hunt told MPs in parliament today that regions need good local leadership as well as infrastructure and further devolution deals are being announced.

He said there will be an elected mayor in Suffolk, and the deals will bring mayors to Cornwall, Norfolk, and an area in the north-east of England.

The council is currently in discussions with the Government about securing a new County Deal for Cornwall.

This aims to bring more funding and powers to Cornwall from the Government which the council’s Conservative administration says would benefit Cornwall.

However, in order to have the highest Level 3 devolution the Government indicated that local councils would have to change their governance and have a directly elected mayor.

In September council leader Linda Taylor said that the council and Cornwall’s six MPs were going to ask then Prime Minister Liz Truss to ask whether they could have the Level 3 deal but without having to introduce a directly elected mayor. However, that request has been rejected.

There have been calls for a referendum to be held to allow residents of Cornwall to decide whether there should be a directly elected mayor. Cllr Taylor has previously dismissed this and said that the council has no plans for a referendum due to the cost.

But responding to the news, Falmouth Town councillor and Labour group leader Jude Robinson said: "The budget announcement of a Mayor for Cornwall won’t go down too well - especially since about 60 of our local councils, including Falmouth, have asked that the people are consulted before this is imposed on us.

"After 12 years of Conservative government, our public services are on their knees, most people are worse off then they were in 2010 and we are going to have to pay more tax for less.

"And we have to have a Mayor to ‘unlock growth’ because? Maybe because the government hasn’t any idea how to?

"We have a directly elected Police Commissioner and our police force is in special measures. Doesn’t seem a good precedent."

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