My conversation with York and North Yorkshire Mayor, David Skaith
Policy Director
This week, I had the pleasure of sitting down for a conversation with David Skaith, the mayor of York and North Yorkshire. Skaith is a very different kind of politician: in many ways an outright outsider, now propelled into a position of considerable influence and an unarguable, personal mandate from his voters to not only represent them, but affect change.
This simply would not have been possible before the arrival of this new model. Directly elected mayors are shaking up the politics of England. We’re now looking ahead to a whole country with these regional and sub-regional leaders – starting with those who will be joining the ranks as a result of this week’s local elections, where four combined authorities – including two brand new additions – are electing their mayors.
David Skaith offered lessons for new mayors based on his first year in office: in short, don’t be tempted to try and do everything, and use your platform to unleash others’ potential.
Some more key take aways, as I saw them:
- It’s different to be a mayor in a rural context.
As the first mayor of England’s most rural combined authority, Skaith spoke about his determination to show that devolution doesn’t just work for big cities. He argued powerfully that rural areas have distinct economic potential, from sustainable farming to advanced agri-tech, and that this should shape not just local plans but national policy priorities. It is clear that he sees balancing the interests of farmers, coastal communities, and business owners in towns and cities (like himself) as a defining aspect of his role.
- The public will expect more directly empowered mayors.
Skaith was refreshingly candid about the structural limits of the current model, and about the reality that expectations from the public are running ahead of the powers mayors actually have. He spoke of being asked about hedge cutting after delivering a presentation on a multi-million pound growth strategy: a reminder that visibility and accountability don’t always align neatly with statutory authority. This adds up to a clear message for national government: if we want mayors to take on more, we must give them the tools to succeed. That means long-term funding settlements, flexibility over how to spend them, and a genuine commitment to devolving power beyond the big city regions.
- For a good mayor, place should always trump politics.
A more diverse ‘gang’ of mayors is emerging after this week’s local elections, in contrast to the all-but-homogenous group that has been in place since last year. Strikingly, during our conversation, Skaith spoke warmly not only about his fellow Labour mayors but about Conservative Ben Houchen as well. Whatever their politics, politicised behaviour – and polarised point-scoring – will not do the trick, according to Skaith. As he put it, "if you come in there being punchy and fighting and kicking off, you're just going to fail your region."
The Meetings with Mayors series will continue on May 13th, when I will be joined by Richard Parker, Mayor of the West Midlands. You can watch or listen to any episode of the series, and sign up to attend future episodes live, on this page.