A GOVERNMENT minister has warned the North-East risks being stuck in the “slow lane” of devolution if it fails to agree united proposals to transfer powers to the region.

Communities Secretary Greg Clark, who was born in Middlesbrough, challenged North-East council leaders to take the devolution process to “the next level” by putting forward joint proposals for negotiations with his Government.

Speaking in Harrogate following a meeting with the region’s council chiefs, Mr Clark said: “I really want the North-East to be in the vanguard and not in the slow lane.”

But he insisted a regionwide mayor must be accepted, saying: “The scale of devolution that would be on offer would require that. George Osborne has said we won’t settle for less than a mayor where there’s an opportunity for very significant devolution and that absolutely has to apply to the North-East.

“The idea the North-East would have a watered down, weak version of autonomy and powers compared to other places, I as a North-Easterner wouldn’t countenance – and I don’t think the people of the North-East would want.”

Mr Clark also said a local referendum on devolution would not be appropriate or needed, saying “local leaders should be able to take a view on that”.

But Labour’s interim leader Harriet Harman said it was wrong to impose a regionwide mayor and devolution should come from the bottom upwards.

Mr Clark, who was promoted to the Cabinet after the General Election, said the North-East had been slow out of the blocks when Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPs) were introduced and warned against any repeated delays over devolution caused by trying to bring the North-East and Tees Valley together under one setup.

“It would be a mistake to be delayed by that. They (Tees Valley) are making tremendous progress themselves,” he said.

On North Yorkshire, he said the county could continue to have a strong influence both to the north and south.

Simon Henig, the Labour leader of Durham County Council and chair of the North East Combined Authority, who last month strongly criticised the idea of a regionwide mayor, said the meeting with Mr Clark had been productive and constructive and while he had misgivings about a regionwide mayor, he was “ruling nothing out”.

Mr Clark also warned of further council funding cuts in coming years, saying: “I can’t pretend there aren’t going to be savings required, there absolutely will be. My commitment is to be open to conversations about how they can best be managed.”

Mr Clark and Ms Harman were speaking at the Local Government Association conference which ended today (Thursday, July 2).