North Yorkshire Council has begun legal action against York and North Yorkshire Combined Authority (CA) over a decision which council chiefs say will mean a £20m loss in funding for road repairs.
Unitary authority leaders are seeking a judicial review after the CA agreed the budget for the Transport Capital Programme 2026 to 2030 without their backing.
While the budget was supported by David Skaith, Mayor of York and North Yorkshire, and City of York Council chiefs, North Yorkshire Council leader Carl Les and deputy leader Gareth Dadd voted against the plan.
They are unhappy that extra money provided by the government has been “top-sliced” by the mayor for other transport schemes.
They have also opposed a change to the calculation for road maintenance funding which means £4m of their allocation will be diverted to City of York Council.
In a letter before action sent by assistant chief executive Barry Khan, the council claims legal errors were made when the decision was taken on March 27, which means the outcome was unlawful.
The letter says the council does not send the letter “lightly”.
However, it adds:
“It is important for CA that the issues contained in this letter are taken seriously and also assists in setting how the partner organisations work in the future.
“It is hoped that this can be used to reset relationships and ensure that we can all work collaboratively for our residents in the future.”
It continues:
“This letter is therefore sent – urgently – expressly as a transparent attempt to alert the CA to the clear legal errors that occurred and provide the opportunity for them to be corrected by the suspended implementation of the decision and the re-taking of the decision in a lawful manner.
“This will avoid the worst case scenario – for all parties – of a judicial review being brought with the associated cost, time and poor optics of litigation.
“The public purse is not best served in taking legal proceedings in this matter if it can be resolved by other means.”
The council claims that the decision needed Cllr Les, as leader of North Yorkshire Council, to be in agreement, while it also alleges that the mayor prevented Cllr Dadd from moving an amendment to the budget proposal, which is a breach of the constitution.
Cllr Les said his authority was taking the action because the budget decision was “prejudicial to the residents of North Yorkshire”.
He added:
“The basis of setting up the combined authority was that, although it had been led by the mayor, it requires a great deal of consensus to move initiatives or to deliver initiatives.
“We think this is a budgetary matter and, under the constitution, the budget has to be not only a majority opinion of the authority, but it’s got to be a unanimous decision by the authority, so there are elements in the decision-making that we think are flawed.”
In response, Mr Skaith said the council’s action was “beyond regrettable”.
He added:
“It’s a political stunt which could waste thousands and thousands of pounds of taxpayer money. I think the public will see it for what it is, the Tories using public money to fight against getting more investment every year for the next four years.
“That record investment will now have to be paused. That stings so much because they sat back quietly when the last Conservative government actually did cut their roads funding two years in a row.
“I wasn’t elected to carry on the business as usual that has failed communities across North Yorkshire for decades.”
As well as starting legal proceedings, North Yorkshire Council chiefs have asked their authority’s transport, economy, environment and enterprise overview and scrutiny committee to examine the budget decision.
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