An inquiry looking into progress on devolution in England has been launched by the Housing, Communities and Local Government Committee.

The inquiry will examine the impact of recently agreed devolution agreements and if the transfer of further powers can boost local economies and provision of public services.

It will investigate the roles of directly elected mayors, quality of scrutiny in decision making and public accountability.

Chair of the Committee, Clive Betts, said: ‘The approach the Government has taken is to develop bespoke arrangements for different areas, both in terms of the powers devolved to them and the administrative systems to execute them. We have launched this inquiry to understand the impact of the current approach. Has tailoring devolution to each locality improved decision making, the local economy and public services?

’Most importantly, we want to discover what opportunities there are for improving outcomes across the country.’