March 2026 Director’s Blog: Reflecting back and building momentum towards further devolved powers
As we move into spring, momentum is building towards further devolved powers for Glasgow City Region.
And rightly so, as we see yet further unprecedented funding and powers being granted to English City Regions, with announcements this month by Rachel Reeves of £1.7 billion of new investment for city regions across the north of England and the National Wealth Fund’s £500 million backing of Manchester’s Good Growth Fund. As one of the UK’s largest regions, we have the need, the ambition and the ability to expect similar support.
Reflecting back, we have established strong foundations on which to underpin our future plans and ambitions.
Last year was by far our most ambitious and productive yet, defined by collaboration, delivery and a Regional team whose commitment was evident throughout.
We successfully integrated Clydeplan and established a new Place team, creating a stronger and more strategic Region-wide approach. Our £190 million Investment Zone moved from concept to delivery, leveraging an additional £25 million from Scottish Enterprise and becoming the largest in the UK.
We secured £2 million for maritime skills, passed City Deal Gateway Review 2 – releasing a further £300 million, and secured £50 million through the Local Innovation Partnerships Fund.
And we celebrated Living Wage week with our 200th accredited Living Wage employer, achieving our year one target.
In December, we launched the £25 million Clyde Mission Heat Decarbonisation Fund, advanced our new Clyde Mission Masterplan, and achieved exceptional 99% expenditure on UK Shared Prosperity Fund.
Our 5G Innovation Region was one of only three UK programmes awarded a full extension, delivering genuinely innovative, sector-leading work. And just before Christmas, we launched the £750 million Electric Vehicle Charging contract, futureproofing our transport infrastructure for the decade ahead.
Our partnership with the National Wealth Fund continues to be recognised as sector leading.
Just this month, formal confirmation of the Investment Zone tax site by the UK and Scottish Governments will unlock millions of pounds of additional private investment into the area, thanks to tax incentives for eligible businesses to locate into the tax site zone.
The Investment Zone will bring additional benefits to the local economy of up to £162 million through the retention of additional non-domestic rates generated within the entire investment zone over 25 years.
Our City Deal continues to deliver and during Scottish Apprenticeship Week we highlighted the human impact of our work, with 330 people moved into employment through community benefits requirements built into contracts.
All of these achievements reflect a team delivering at pace, with creativity and purpose. And with new capacity coming through, responsibility for the Regional element of the Clyde Metro, and a new devolution deal to negotiate, 2026 is set to be an even more important year for Glasgow City Region.
Regional Empowerment
This month marks an important moment in that journey.
Last week’s Cabinet discussed Regional Empowerment, considering the implications of recent major national reforms and the approach that we will take to ensure Glasgow City Region is fully prepared to lead within Scotland’s emerging regional landscape.
The City Region already operates at a significant scale, with a portfolio of around £2 billion which is comparable if not larger than many English combined authorities. However, the limitations of the current system – fragmented responsibilities, constrained fiscal levers and inconsistent national alignment – continue to restrict the Region’s ability to drive long‑term economic transformation.
Both the Scottish and UK Governments have signaled a clear shift towards more empowered regional structures. Independent reviews, academic research and policy announcements all point to a future where regions have greater autonomy, clearer responsibilities and improved levers for investment.
All of this creates a strategic opening which we must be ready to seize.
The paper presented to Cabinet highlights the significance of forthcoming legislation announced by the First Minister, which would allow Regional Economic Partnerships to gain legal status and access a menu of devolved powers. Crucially, regions will be able to move at their own pace, seeking powers aligned to their ambition and maturity.
For Glasgow City Region, the implications are substantial.
They present a significant opportunity for the Region to assert itself as a leading candidate for enhanced regional powers; shape the design of new legislative and governance frameworks and secure fiscal tools and flexibilities that support long‑term investment.
The Region’s scale, economic importance and established partnership structures place us in a strong position to influence national policy discussions and secure a more autonomous regional settlement.
We are well positioned to take on a stronger leadership role across:
- Planning
- Skills
- Housing
- Transport
- Innovation, and
- Economic development.
Proposed Approach
To ensure we are fully prepared to engage with forthcoming national reforms and to articulate a clear, evidence‑based case for enhanced autonomy, Cabinet has agreed that we set up dedicated workstreams covering key policy areas, including Innovation, Investment, Infrastructure, Housing, Planning, Transport, Skills and Economic Development.
These will bring together expertise from across the Region and make use of existing structures.
Given the shared challenges and opportunities between Scotland’s two largest economic areas, we will also establish two joint workstreams with Edinburgh City Region, one on governance and one on fiscal powers. Together, these efforts will form the basis of our engagement with national government in the months ahead.
The workstreams will be tasked with developing proposals which bring additionality to the Region, focus on devolution down from central government rather than up from local authorities and which do not impact on other funding arrangements, including the local government finance settlement.
It is important to note that Government is keen to devolve to the place through Regional Economic Partnerships and not simply to local authorities. So, all partners will be fully involved in developing proposals for consideration by Cabinet.
We really are entering a pivotal period. With major reforms ahead – our shared ambition, partnership working and delivery capability are going to be critical.
It is a huge opportunity for the Region to build on the leadership established with the City Deal and lead this agenda, shaping the next phase of regional economic governance in Scotland.
I have no doubt that 2026 will be our biggest year yet.