The Mayor is a major figure in the political life of the area. They act as an ambassador for the area; promoting it as a place to live, work, visit and invest in.
The Mayor is Chair of the Mayoral Combined Authority and a member of the South Yorkshire Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP).
The Mayor and the other Leaders of the South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority work with the LEP, central government and other organisations in pursuing shared goals and delivering key strategic plans.
The Mayor has certain public transport powers relating to how buses may operate in the future.
The Mayoral Combined Authority has now agreed to move forward with the South Yorkshire Devolution Deal. The Devolution Deal brings with it £30m a year in additional funding for economic growth, as well as power over the adult education budget totalling around £35m each year.
It also means additional powers for the Mayoral Combined Authority, in areas including transport, skills, and housing.
On the advice of an Independent Remuneration Panel, the Combined Authority has agreed to pay an allowance of 79,000 to the Mayor of South Yorkshire (payable from the 28th July 2020).