England council shake-up: five ways it could affect you

Mayors will have to come up with local growth plans for their areas to help kickstart the economy.

They’ll have to work with major employers, universities, colleges and industry bodies in their areas, identifying sectors for growth in the region.

Local leaders will then need to put in place the conditions for growth, like college courses and Jobcentre support that match local skills gaps. The hope is all of this will create jobs, with the government saying that local leaders have a better understanding of the strengths and ambitions of an area than Whitehall.

“We must rewire England and end the hoarding in Whitehall by devolving power and money from central government to those with skin in the game,” Rayner said.

Mayoral devolution deals also usually come with a 30-year investment fund of hundreds of millions of pounds. Some mayors also have powers to charge their own precept on council tax – although not all those that do have that power actually charge one.

Areas that can demonstrate sound financial management will get so-called integrated settlements. That means they get one pot of money from Whitehall and can choose to allocate it how they see fit, rather than specific budgets for specific things.