AFTER reading some letters and the article from John Beirne, who quite clearly has no idea what devolution is, I think it is important that we are clear on what it means.

Devolution is exactly that: the devolution of powers down from Government that we have never had before. The powers passed down are around large strategic projects, not the day-to-day things that we do as a council. The powers will enable large projects such as Parkside. I for one would like these big decisions to be made in our county, by local politicians rather than a minister in Whitehall.

We've worked together on a county level for years, it isn't new. And we have had large projects out of partnership working such as Haydock and Windle Island improvements, Newton and St Helens train station improvements and large infrastructure projects. The only thing that changes will be who the accountable figurehead is. It may be Joe Anderson – or any other person who decides to apply for it.

Lastly, the issue seems to have reignited the debate about where we sit geographically. It's a fact that the majority of our residents move around Merseyside for employment. We live in a borough that has Warrington, Wigan and Liverpool postcodes. Some of us have 01925 phone numbers, some have 01744, some 01942 and the rest 0151. That is no different to loads of boroughs around the country.

Remember, your councillors live in the borough too. Why wouldn't they want the best for the place they represent?

Seve Gomez-Aspron

Newton-le-Willows ward councillor