It was announced this morning that the proposals to introduce a Mayor of Cornwall would no longer be pursued after a public consultation made clear that plans to change how Cornwall Council runs to a mayor-led system was not wanted or popular.

The results of the people who responded to the public consultation over the Level 3 'devolution' plans showed that the majority were opposed to the deal. Following this, Linda Taylor has announced that she would be asking cabinet to pursue a level 2 deal which seeks to retain as many of the Level 3 deal (which would have required a Mayor) as possible, including the £10m adult education budget' but reportedly would not include the £360m funding for investment, believed to be over 30 years.

Local councillors from all over the county have since responded to the news.

Nick Craker, Conservative MP for Liskeard central has said that " Council Cllr Linda Taylor has made the right call".

"It was clear to me that a referendum would be required, following a very mixed set of responses from the public consultation.I do not think directly elected mayors for a single council area like Cornwall are the right model for devolving powers and money away from Westminster. It has already been tried and rejected elsewhere.

"The six Cornwall MPs and Council’s leadership team need to come up with a much more pioneering plan for devolution in Cornwall and take that to the Government.

"It’s widely accepted that power is far too centralised in this country. The unitary council has been here since 2009, and I think we should work with what we’ve got, rather than creating another new level of bureaucracy." Nick explained.

During the 10 week consultation thousands of residents, businesses, and stakeholders from across Cornwall made their views heard. It was shown that 69% of people were against the deal, a separate survey undertaken on telephone and face-to-face found 65% in favour of the deal and a mayor. One of the key issues for the 69% opposed to the deal was the lack of trust in those  making decisions for Cornwall.

Edwina Hannaford, Liberal Democrat MP for Looe West, Pelynt, Lansallos & Lanteglos , said: "I’m glad Cllr Taylor has finally dropped the Mayor for Cornwall proposal. She should now consider her position. The consultation was deeply flawed consultation and badly managed and skewed to get the result they wanted. Cllr Taylor and the administration on Cornwall Council just didn’t read the room and just ploughed on regardless.

"This is a massive misjudgement by the Conservative administration and Cllr Taylor. We all support devolution but it has to be meaningful where Cornwall sets the agenda not Westminster, rather than the pursue devolution that was on offer.

"I hope that the Conservative administration and Cornish MPs will impress on Westminster Cornwall still need substantial budgets that meet the needs of Cornwall and the powers to deliver without the need for a Mayor.

"Liberal Democrats have long supported true devolution including a Cornish Assembly where the people of Cornwall are in the driving seat, with the funding we need and deserve, not the crumbs from the Westminster table."

The Level 3 'devolution' deal would have seen a £360 million investment fund over 30 years to Cornwall Council, to deliver on the region’s priorities. The level 2 deal does not include the £360m investment fund, or the £8.7m promised for brownfield housing development but will keep elements of the level 3 deal such as the £10m per year for adult education.

Cornwall Councillor for Liskeard South and Dobwalls Jane Pascoe commented: “I believe the Leader of Cornwall Council Cllr. Linda Taylor has made the right decision to not accept the Devolution Deal based on the response from the people of Cornwall.

"She visited towns up and down the County and talked to many people and gave them the opportunity to comment via the public consultation.

"She promised she would not only listen but hear what the residents said and she has reacted to their wishes, I respect her for keeping her word.

“I represent 5 Parishes in my division and have listened very carefully to their views and had made strong representation on their behalf to the Leader of CC. It is now the time to look to the future of Cornwall and for all of us to work together to make it a better place to Live, Work and Thrive.

"This decision has sent a strong message to Westminster that Cornwall has strongly voiced that a Directly Elected Mayor is not appropriate or wanted. Going forward I hope our MPs will be negotiating with the Governmenet for the deserved power and finance for investment in this diverse and unique County, Cornwall our Home.”

Kate Ewert, Labour MP for Rame Peninsula and St Germans added: "“The Labour Group on Cornwall Council are delighted that the Leader of the Council has finally listened to the people of Cornwall and pulled this awful deal. That it has taken this long, and cost so much in officer time and resources that should have been being used on the many other pressing issues that face Cornish residents, shows a serious lack of judgement.

"We, as a group, want proper, meaningful devolution for Cornwall, this deal did not offer that. The next Labour Government will implement our Take Back Control Bill in the first 100 days of forming a government, this will allow local communities like ours to spell out exactly what it is that they know is needed without the imposition of unpopular Mayors or governance models.”

“In Rame and St Germans, Parish Councils and residents alike have impressed on me how opposed they were too the idea of a Mayor for Cornwall, this is the right result for the people I represent”

Cllr Colin Martin, Acting Leader of the Liberal Democrat group on Cornwall Council said: “Today’s U-turn is a perfect illustration of a Leader being forced to listen to the voices of backbench Councillors. Her previous public statements made it clear that she was willing to ignore thousands of people who responded to a public consultation, but under our current system, she could not ignore elected Councillors. The only reason she has backed down is that she knows she doesn’t have the votes to get her plan through Council. A Directly Elected Mayor would face no such checks and balances, which is why the Liberal Democrats have opposed the change.

“But what next for Devolution? Everyone (including the Conservatives) agreed that these powers and funds were good for Cornwall, so it is wrong to take them away simply because we don't want a Directly Elected Mayor. If the Conservatives punish Cornwall by taking away the things we all agree that Cornwall needs, then the voters will hold them accountable at the next election.

“It has been a long-standing policy of the Liberal Democrats to give Cornwall the same level of devolved powers and funding as Wales. A Cornish Assembly, with permanent control of a fixed share of the national budget, led by members elected under a fair voting system is what Cornwall deserves and needs.”

Lastly, Leigh Frost, Cornwall Councillor for Bodmin St Petroc, called for a Cornish Assembly instead of the Mayor plans, saying: "In Cornwall a directly elected mayor was never the right fit for us. I have not yet found anyone I’ve spoken to in favour of it, and that was replicated throughout the Duchy. The Tories persevered with their plan of centralising power in one set of hands against overwhelming opposition.

"As it became more and more uncomfortable, many of the Tory backbenchers saw that supporting this would not be a good look and joined us in opposition. I’m glad they have seen sense and realised that this was a poor plan, a poor deal, and a poor choice for the people of Cornwall. Now that this has been cast aside, it’s now time to focus on true devolution for Cornwall, so we can make a difference for our residents. I would love to see a true ‘Cornish Assembly’ just like our Celtic cousins enjoy elsewhere in the United Kingdom."