The Budget puts a Wessex mayoral deal in its final stages and pencils in £8.69m for 2027-28. A public consultation comes next. No election date yet.

The Government has put a mayor for Wessex in writing for the first time. The Budget 2026 document, published on Wednesday 28 October, says ministers are “in the final stages of agreeing” 10 new devolution deals. One of them is a Mayoral Strategic Authority for Wessex.

Wessex would cover Dorset Council, Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole, Somerset and Wiltshire. Until now the plan rested on the Prime Minister’s answer in the Commons on 21 October and an MP’s account of a Government confirmation on 28 October.

What the Government has published

Two documents published on Budget day carry Wessex by name.

  • The Budget itself lists Wessex alongside Devon, Plymouth and Torbay; Hertfordshire; Lancashire; Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland; Stoke and Staffordshire; Surrey; and Thames Valley as mayoral authorities close to agreement. It says the Government “will now work with the relevant councils to launch local consultations with key stakeholders, as the key next step”.
  • A Treasury note on Good Growth Funds gives Wessex an indicative £8.69 million of capital funding for 2027-28.

The money is not guaranteed. The note says allocations to emerging authorities “are contingent on an agreed devolution deal and geography by 2027 to 2028”. It is worked out from population, at a lower rate per head than areas that already have a mayor.

How Wessex compares

The same note gives indicative sums to the other areas waiting for a deal:

Area Indicative 2027-28 allocation
Hampshire and Solent £9.37m
Thames Valley £9.10m
Kent and Medway £8.78m
Greater Essex £8.76m
Wessex £8.69m
Sussex and Brighton £8.01m
Devon, Plymouth and Torbay £5.70m

The Budget also promises £150 million in 2027-28 across all strategic authorities for staff and expertise. The documents do not say how much of that would reach Wessex.

What the council leaders said

The leaders of all four councils issued a joint statement on Budget day. They are Nick Ireland of Dorset Council, Millie Earl of BCP Council, Bill Revans of Somerset Council and Ian Thorn of Wiltshire Council.

“We warmly welcome the Chancellor’s commitment today to support devolution for Wessex in the Autumn Budget Statement,” they said. They said a deal would mean “greater local control over decisions affecting transport, housing, skills, regeneration and economic growth”.

“Wessex is ready. We have done the groundwork and look forward to continuing to work closely with Government on an agreement that delivers lasting benefits,” they added.

What is still missing

  • An election date. Vikki Slade, MP for Mid Dorset and North Poole, says the mayor will be elected in 2028. Neither Budget document gives a year for Wessex.
  • The deal itself. No devolution agreement setting out powers and money has been published.
  • The consultation. The Budget says local consultations come next, but gives no dates.

What it means for you

Nothing changes yet for council services, council tax or bin collections. Dorset Council stays in charge of them. A mayor would sit above the four councils, with powers over things like transport, housing and skills across the whole area.

The next point where residents get a say is the public consultation the Budget promises. We will report it when it opens.