North of Tyne Combined Authority
North of Tyne Combined Authority within England
Type
Type	Combined Authority
History
Founded	2 November 2018
Leadership
Elected Mayor	Jamie Driscoll since 6 May 2019
Structure
Joint committees	North East Joint Transport Committee
Meeting place
The Quadrant, Cobalt Business Park, Wallsend
Website
www.northoftyne-ca.gov.uk

The North of Tyne Combined Authority is the combined authority for the historic county boundaries of Northumberland, North East England.^[1] The authority came into being on 2 November 2018 under the statutory name Newcastle upon Tyne, North Tyneside and Northumberland Combined Authority. The three local authorities previously formed part of the North East Combined Authority.^[2] For transport policy the two combined authorities come together to form the North East Joint Transport Committee.^[3]

The authority met for the first time on 8 November 2018 at Morpeth Town Hall. Norma Redfearn, the elected mayor of North Tyneside Council, was appointed the chair until an interim mayor was appointed.^[4] At the combined authority cabinet meeting held on 4 December 2018, Norma Redfearn was confirmed as the interim mayor, and remained in post until the election of Labour and Co-operative's Jamie Driscoll as the authority's first directly elected mayor.

History

The authority was formed on 2 November 2018 and in May 2019, elections were held for a directly elected regional mayor who has taken control of certain powers and funding devolved from Westminster to the newly formed region.^[5] A fund of £600 million over 30 years, to be administered by the new mayor, was announced in the November 2017 budget.^[6]

The responsibilities and governance of the three constituent local authorities will remain unchanged.^[7]

The total population of the combined area is approximately 816,000^[8] and it covers an area of 2,012 square miles (5,210 km²).^[9] Despite the name "North of Tyne," parts of the area are south of the River Tyne, including the towns of Hexham and Prudhoe.

On 27 April 2018, Northumberland, North Tyneside and Newcastle City Council voted to support the proposal.^[10] In November 2018 parliament approved the proposal and the first election for the combined authority took place on 2 May 2019 along with the other elections across the United Kingdom.^[11]

The 2020 Spring Budget from central government reserves funding for "intra-city transport" between Tees Valley and Tyne and Wear, which has been interpreted by some as meaning the borders of the North of Tyne Combined Authority could be adjusted.^[12]

Following the release of the Levelling Up White Paper in February 2022, it was announced that the North of Tyne is proposed to be replaced by a larger North East combined authority; it would include South Tyneside and Sunderland, County Durham is currently in pursuit of an independent devolution plan.^[13] This would come with an expansion of powers, with transport, various other local powers and incorporating the police and crime commissioner role for Northumbria Police- as the borders would be the same- inline with other metro mayors. It is a high probability the next election will take place during the 2024 United Kingdom local elections.^[13]

Membership

Formal membership of the North of Tyne Combined Authority consists of those serving on the following statutory committees:

• Cabinet
• Overview and Scrutiny Committee
• Audit and Standards Committee

Cabinet

The Cabinet of the Combined Authority met for the first time on 8 November 2018 at Morpeth Town Hall in Northumberland. The current membership of the Cabinet is as follows:

Overview and Scrutiny Committee

The North of Tyne Combined Authority Overview and Scrutiny Committee had its first meeting on 17 December 2018. The membership of the Overview and Scrutiny Committee is as follows:

Audit and Standards Committee

The membership of the Audit and Standards Committee is as follows:

Local Government

Map of the local government authorities of North East England, highlighting the area covered by the North of Tyne Combined Authority.

The Combined Authority consists of the following authorities (2019 population estimates):