As noble Lords will see, an example of major powers is devolution for Greater Manchester. That is an example of a suite of major powers.
I should like to make some progress. The noble Lord, Lord Grocott, referred to Amendment 3, which would obstruct our policy of allowing major powers to be devolved to a city because there is a necessary single point of accountability—that is, the mayor. The noble Lord also said that people should have a referendum to decide whether to have a metro mayor. We recognise that in the past some cities have rejected the opportunity to elect a mayor. This time it is an entirely different proposition. It is about putting in place a devolution deal which the democratically elected representatives of the place have agreed with government. Part of that deal is the necessity for robust local governance for the new devolved powers, and for a powerful point of accountability such as a mayor. It is for the elected representatives of an area who have a democratic mandate to decide, in discussions with government, whether they wish to introduce a mayor and benefit from major devolved powers.
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I will address the points made by the noble Lord, Lord Scriven—if not, he will stand up, I am sure. He said that the amendment only allows flexibility. That is not the case. The Bill already gives total flexibility as to what the deal can be. The amendment introduces a straitjacket to the kind of deal that can be put in place. Under the amendment, an area may be interested in having powers devolved of a kind where a mayor would provide that necessary single point of accountability, but this could no longer be the basis of a deal.
The noble Lord, Lord Scriven, talked about us imposing a model of governance. It is entirely the opposite. The Bill does not seek to impose governance models. As the Bill has progressed and we have had arguments about what can and cannot be had, I have always said that we are interested in hearing from all areas about all different types of proposals. The noble and learned Lord, Lord Mackay of Clashfern, pointed out why the Bill does not impose a model of governance.