We recently reported via our social media platforms that Yorkshire had featured particularly strongly amongst Lords attending a Parliamentary debate on Traditional Counties.
Responding to the matters raised was Lord Greenhalgh, Minister of State at the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities. Contributors to the debate included Lord Blunkett, former MP for Sheffield Brightside & Hillsborough; Lord Wallace of Saltaire; Baroness Blake, former Leader of Leeds City Council, and Lord Caine, a former Special Adviser from Leeds. Collectively, they called for/to:
- Fairer funding to the County of Yorkshire in order to level up;
- Government to reconsider their insistance on piecemeal devolution to Yorkshire rather than the One-Yorkshire devolution Yorkshire actually wants;
- “Overturn the vandalism of the early 1970s and restore the territorial integrity and names of the ancient ridings of God’s own county“.
There were also several other Members of the House who raised matters of great relevance to the recognition and integrity of the County of Yorkshire and to the aims of YDM. These included calls for/to:
- Use Traditional Counties for ceremonial purposes instead of “the more recent artificial creations”;
- Align Lieutenancies with the 92 Traditional Counties of the UK;
- The Minister to meet and discuss the matters debated with the Historic Counties All-Party Group and their special adviser, Mr Russell Grant;
- Remember that Traditional Counties “with their proximity to the people and as an enabler of local identity”, play a critical role in the Levelling up Agenda.
We would describe the debate as very heartening and recommend that you watch it to see for yourself. It can be seen in the first ten minutes of the recording at:
https://parliamentlive.tv/event/index/699fe25b-0a98-420b-9377-b5bbf8bc3b38?in=11:06:40
And a transcript of the debate can be found at:
A round of applause for some straight Yorkshire speaking!