Elected Mayor
The Hull and East Yorkshire Combined Authority was formed out of a level 3 devolution deal. The most lucrative deal available to newly devolved areas, allowing the greatest level of powers and funding to come to the region. The deal included having an elected mayor, a regional leader directly elected by the people they serve.
Luke Campbell was elected as the first Hull and East Yorkshire mayor after a Combined Authority Mayoral election was held on Thursday 1 May 2025. Mayoral elections are scheduled to take place every 4 years, meaning the next one is due to occur in May 2029.
Directly elected mayors provide visible leadership and act as a champion for regional priorities, attracting investment that creates new opportunities for the area and the people who live there. By being directly elected, the mayors are given authority to make decisions that benefit the area.
A locally elected mayor does not make independent decisions. Combined authorities must be local authority-led, so a mayor would not be able to act against the will of the 2 councils. The elected mayor is the chair of the Combined Authority board, which also includes councillors from each local authority.
The mayor provides overall leadership for HEYCA and chairs meetings of the Executive Board. The mayor is able to make certain decisions themselves, whilst other decisions need to be made by the Board, of which the mayor is a member. Areas where the mayor is personally accountable include -
- housing and land acquisition powers to support housing regeneration
- drawing up a local transport plan
- bus franchising powers.
The elected mayor, chosen by residents, works closely with both councils, serving as a link to the government.
The elected mayor of Hull and East Yorkshire fulfils a different role to the long-standing civic role performed by the Lord Mayor of Kingston upon Hull.
It is not expected that council tax would rise specifically because of the Combined Authority. It is true that the mayor has powers to raise a charge on council tax, as is the case in other mayoral combined authorities around the country. However, throughout the country, this power has rarely - if ever - been used. In fact, many mayoral candidates run on a platform or pledge of not making changes to council tax.
Accountability
The mayor in Hull and East Yorkshire is chosen by the people living here, so is directly accountable to them. An overview and scrutiny committee will check and review the mayor’s decisions and activities.
The Government has also set out an ‘accountability framework’ for all devolved authorities in England, to make sure that they are open and accountable to the communities that they serve.
Where the mayor is based
With HEYCA being in its infancy, no permanent base has yet been established for the Combined Authority or mayor’s office. Provision has been made for HEYCA’s team to work between Hull City Council’s Guildhall and East Riding of Yorkshire Council’s County Hall. Official HEYCA meetings and other gatherings have been held at the ergo business centre near the Humber Bridge.