The £600m devolution deal, which would include a 'mayor' for Norfolk, has been branded pointless by one of the county's leading Conservatives, in a mounting backlash against the proposals.
John Fuller, the longest-serving council leader in Norfolk, called for the deal offered by the government to be rejected.
The South Norfolk Council leader said the County Deal, which would hand extra money, including a £20m a year investment fund, and transfer Whitehall powers to a directly-elected leader of Norfolk County Council "missed the target" and was "not a compelling proposition".
Andrew Proctor, leader of Norfolk County Council said the deal will help boost the economy through jobs, training, housing and development and better transport.
But Mr Fuller bemoaned how districts - which have responsibility for housing, and planning - were not involved in the process.
He said: "What is the point? It doesn't even absorb the police and crime commissioner and proposes leadership which does not have any hands on the levers of planning, housing growth and the clean environment.
"All of those things are done by the districts and will not be within the powers of the directly-elected leader of Norfolk County Council.
"This is even more government, but doing less. It's not a compelling proposition.
"If Michael Gove had been advised to get all the authorities which do have their hands on the levers together, with a true mayor like in other areas, that would have been seriously worth considering.
"But this is an experiment for Norfolk and Suffolk with little chance of making any real difference, which will just take powers further away from the people on the street. It misses the target completely. It's a poor deal and, on that basis, it should be rejected."
George Freeman, Mid Norfolk Conservative MP welcomed the "first steps" but said it needed to go much further in the future.
He said he wants to see an elected mayor for the whole of East Anglia, and Norfolk County Council leading a Norfolk Health and Care Service - replacing "NHS bureaucracy in London and Cambridge".
And he suggested the district councils in Norfolk should be replaced with an east and a west council responsible for housing, planning, transport and economic development.
Mr Freeman said: "This is an important first step towards Norfolk being able to take back control from London of how we run vital local public services like social care, and having more freedoms to attract investment and shape housing and infrastructure development to better reflect what Norfolk needs.
"The key now is to make sure that this deal and the mayor brings all the relevant councils and agencies together to deliver tangible local benefits for the people we all serve."
Steve Morphew, leader of the opposition Labour group at Norfolk County Council, said he feared the deal was "a dud".
He said: "When you consider the backlog of maintenance on the county's roads is £60m, then this £20m a year is not going to go very far."
Steffan Aquarone, Liberal Democrat county councillor and his party's candidate for the North Norfolk constituency at the next general election ruled himself out of standing as the directly-elected leader.
And he said: "If a devolution deal means money to repair the damage done by a decade of Tory cuts to local authorities, then great.
"But the price tag of having a 'mayor' risks giving the government a single puppet to push around."
The deal was branded a "damb squib" by Brian Watkins, leader of the Liberal Democrat group at County Hall, who said it would not bring changes for the better.
And he said: "Although we are told that there will be some form of public consultation in the spring, this will be nothing more than a hollow gesture. It is a fait accompli.
"People will get little say in what happens next, and there is absolutely no guarantee that they will see better governance by county leaders as a result."
Alan Waters, Labour leader of Norwich City Council, said the concept of devolution made sense, but questioned how City Hall would benefit from the deal.
He said: "While the transfer of some power and funding to local councils is clearly the way forward, it won’t address the day-to-day funding of services which our residents rely on us to provide."
He said Norwich is the east's "regional and economic powerhouse" and added: "We will be looking for the best funding opportunities for the city as details of the deal emerge and local residents can have their say on proposals."
Shaun Vincent, Conservative leader of Broadland District Council, said the principle seemed to be good for Norfolk, but he was keen to see the text of the deal which has been offered.
Business leaders welcomed the opportunities a deal would bring, saying it would help drive growth.
Nova Fairbank, chief executive of Norfolk Chambers of Commerce, said: "A county deal for Norfolk would be welcomed by the business community.
"To have guaranteed annual funding over a 30-year period is absolutely going to be for the benefit of the business community.
"Plus, the ability to make local decisions on jobs, transport, infrastructure, housing, and skills is really important to the business community."
The potential investment was also welcomed by the University of East Anglia.
UEA vice-chancellor professor David Richardson said: "We look forward to playing our part to ensure Norfolk and Suffolk residents and businesses have the ability to make local decisions about skills, employment, business, transport and infrastructure, bespoke to our local needs and future prospects."
A ceremonial signing of the deal offer took place at The Nest, on the edge of Norwich, on Thursday.
Levelling-up secretary Michael Gove had been due to attend, but was unable to due to Parliamentary business, so housing minister Lee Rowley attended instead.
Public consultation on the proposals is due to take place early next year.
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