English devolution and migration: A role for strategic authorities

They hold, or are acquiring, responsibilities across skills, employment support, housing, public service reform, public safety, transport and economic development. But migration and asylum policy remain highly centralised, with key decisions still largely made in Whitehall and by the Home Office – creating a persistent disconnect between where decisions are made and where their impacts are managed. 

This report asks what role strategic authorities are already playing in relation to migration and related areas, including asylum, integration and cohesion, where their added value lies, and how their role could develop over time.

We make the case for a shift from doing migration policy to places, to giving places a real role in shaping it. Devolution should mean regional and local partners have the tools to respond to the pressures and opportunities migration brings and, ultimately, to build stronger communities across England.