3.—(1) There is established a combined authority for the combined area.
(2) The combined authority is to be a body corporate and is to be known as the West Midlands Combined Authority.
(3) The functions of the Combined Authority are those functions conferred or imposed upon it by this Order or by any other enactment (whenever passed or made), or as may be delegated to it by or under this Order or any other enactment (whenever passed or made).
4. Schedule 1 (which makes provision about the constitution of the Combined Authority) has effect.
5.—(1) The constituent councils must meet the costs of the Combined Authority reasonably attributable to the exercise of the functions mentioned in article 10 (economic development and regeneration).
(2) The amount payable by each of the constituent councils is to be determined by apportioning the costs of the Combined Authority referred to in paragraph (1) between the constituent councils in such proportions as they may agree or, in default of such agreement, in proportion to the total resident population at the relevant date of the area of each council concerned as estimated by the Statistics Board(1).
(3) For the purposes of paragraph (2) the relevant date in relation to a payment for a financial year is 30th June in the financial year which commenced two years prior to the current financial year.
Section 25 of the Statistics and Registration Service Act 2007 provides that the Statistics Board is responsible for the functions in section 19 of the Registration Service Act 1953 (annual abstract of number of births, deaths and marriages).