Hampshire and Solent devolution: 2026 and 2028 explained

If you have seen the full legal title and wondered what it actually means, the short version is this: Hampshire, the Isle of Wight, Portsmouth and Southampton now have a new shared body called the Hampshire and the Solent Combined County Authority. According to the regulations and the GOV.UK consultation, this body is designed so the four upper-tier councils can take some decisions together across the wider area, rather than each authority acting entirely on its own. (legislation.gov.uk) A Combined County Authority, or CCA, does not replace your existing council. GOV.UK says councils continue to run normal local services such as social care, libraries and education; the new authority sits above that level for agreed regional functions. (gov.uk)

The membership is intentionally council-led at the start. Each constituent council appoints one elected member, Hampshire County Council appoints one extra elected member, and each council also names substitutes. Before a mayor is elected, the authority must choose a chair and vice-chair from among its members. (legislation.gov.uk) That means the 2026 version of the authority is not yet a mayor-led model. It begins as a joint structure run by representatives from the four councils, with room for up to five non-constituent or associate members as well. **What this means:** in the first phase, power is shared and negotiated between the councils rather than centred on one directly elected figure. (legislation.gov.uk)

From 2026, the new authority can start working on transport, but mostly alongside the existing councils rather than instead of them. The regulations say passenger transport functions under section 63 of the Transport Act 1985 are exercisable concurrently with the constituent councils, and any use of those functions in a council’s area needs that council’s consent. (legislation.gov.uk) The same shared approach applies to local transport plans and related strategies under sections 108, 109 and 112 of the Transport Act 2000 until 8 May 2028. The authority also gains a section 31 grant power alongside ministers, as well as shared powers around economic development and regeneration and some crime and disorder information-sharing. So this is about regional planning and co-ordination, not just buses and roads. (legislation.gov.uk)

The big change arrives in May 2028. The first mayoral election is set for 4 May 2028, the first mayor’s term begins on 8 May 2028, and the regulations delay Part 5, the mayoral functions part, until that same date. (legislation.gov.uk) After 8 May 2028, the local transport plan functions stop being shared with the councils and are exercised by the Combined County Authority instead. At that point, those transport planning powers, and the section 31 grant power conferred on the authority, become functions exercisable only by the mayor. The mayor can also appoint one political adviser. **What this means:** 2026 creates the body, but 2028 gives one elected person direct control over key transport planning decisions for the whole area. (legislation.gov.uk)

The rules on money matter because they show who still pays. The constituent councils must meet the Combined County Authority’s costs, and if they cannot agree how to split the bill, the fallback is each area’s share of the total resident population. Where spending is tied to the mayor’s functions and funded by those council contributions, it has to be agreed with the authority in advance. (legislation.gov.uk) The voting rules are also different before and after the mayor arrives. Before the first mayoral term begins, the budget, local transport plans, the constitution and standing orders all need a unanimous vote from the five constituent members. After the mayor takes office, meetings need the mayor or deputy mayor plus at least four constituent members present, and a simple majority must include the mayor or deputy mayor acting in place. There is no casting vote, so a tie fails. (legislation.gov.uk)

If you are asking whether your council disappears in 2026, the answer is no. GOV.UK’s consultation is clear that a Combined County Authority does not replace existing councils, and the regulations themselves are targeted at transport, funding, governance, economic development and information-sharing functions. (gov.uk) So the practical question for residents is not whether ordinary council services change hands overnight. It is who writes the bigger, cross-area plans and who gets the legal power to steer them. In 2026 that work is shared; from 8 May 2028, a large part of the transport planning role shifts to the mayoral level. (gov.uk)

There is a reason this sort of legislation feels dry: it is mostly about wiring, not headlines. Yet the wiring matters. The regulations say the government believes the new authority is likely to improve the economic, social and environmental well-being of people who live or work in the area, and the wider devolution programme is presented by GOV.UK as moving some decisions closer to local people. (legislation.gov.uk) In plain English, then, the timeline is simple. In 2026, Hampshire and the Solent gets the institution. In 2028, it gets the mayor and the strongest transport powers. If you want to follow what happens next, keep your eye on transport plans, council appointments and the first mayoral contest on 4 May 2028. (legislation.gov.uk)