South Yorkshire Mayor is right to set up an inquiry into protecting strategic infrastructure - The Yorkshire Post says

At a time when Westminster refuses to properly deliver new schemes such as HS2 and HS3 in this region, it makes sense to understand and utilise existing infrastructure.

That is why South Yorkshire Mayor Oliver Coppard’s plans for an independent inquiry to help protect strategic infrastructure in the region are welcome.

The inquiry, chaired by respected lawyer Martin McKervey, will look at whether new powers, policies or laws are needed to protect similar and new infrastructure projects in the future, at the local, national, and regional level.

Hopefully, findings from this inquiry can also hold lessons for places outside of South Yorkshire, feeding into the national conversation about regional economies and powers.

Important infrastructure cannot be allowed to be stripped away from the region without due consideration for the local communities that would suffer as a consequence, as has been the case with the closure of DSA.

As Mr Coppard says: “We were at the mercy of a private company over whom we had no control, and a government in London who refused to intervene. That simply can’t be allowed to happen again.”

For levelling up to be a reality, strategic infrastructure needs protecting and as such powers need to be devolved to enable local leaders to intervene when necessary.