North-west responds to Levelling Up White Paper

Following the publication of the Levelling Up White Paper, setting out the government’s strategy for rebalancing inequalities between the South East and other parts of the UK, political and business leaders from the region have shared their thoughts on the plans.

Responding on behalf of the Greater Manchester Combined Authority, the city-region’s Economy Lead and Leader of Stockport Council, Cllr Elise Wilson, was broadly positive of the announcements but recognised many initiatives were already being delivered or proposed in Greater Manchester; she commented:

“There’s plenty to be encouraged by in today’s announcements. Many of the proposals, like deepening devolution, are things we’ve been calling for in Greater Manchester for a long time.

“For us, levelling up isn’t a new concept. Through initiatives like our Good Employment Charter, leadership training for our thousands of SMEs, or helping manufacturers adopt the latest technologies, we’re already on with the job of spreading prosperity and opportunity.

“The announcement of an Innovation Accelerator for Greater Manchester is welcome news, as is the commitment to increasing public R&D spending beyond the South East. Through Innovation Greater Manchester we’ve been making the case for the right powers and funding to deliver an innovation ecosystem.

“The concern is that some of the other new commitments aren’t matched by new funding. The Government must understand that its levelling up missions will be impossible without adequate financial support. We want levelling up to succeed and, if given the right backing, we’re ready to help make it happen.”

Liverpool City Region Mayor Steve Rotheram took a more critical stance, and also echoed concerns over a lack of addition funding commitments from government, saying:

Despite having the best part of two and half years to define ‘levelling up’, this document is severely lacking in fresh ideas and, crucially, new funding to help make anything happen.

“If ‘levelling up’ was supposed to be the Prime Minister’s defining mission then I am sorry to say that it is going to be Mission Impossible with this thin gruel on offer.

“Although there were a few encouraging elements, it is largely a rehashing of things we have already heard before. On the whole, though, it reads like a recipe cooked up during Veganuary – something severely lacking in meat.”

A number of business leaders have been more positive, particularly welcoming plans for Innovation Accelerators, and a government commitment to ensure parity in R&D investment across regions. Chris Oglesby, CEO of Bruntwood, which owns and operates the Alderley Park life sciences hub in Cheshire, said:

“Investing in the innovative capacity of our places through increased R&D spending outside of London and the South East is key to long-term prosperity. For us, this is the real major opportunity presented by the new levelling up strategy to drive growth in city regions.

“Through Innovation Greater Manchester we have promoted the idea of place- based innovation deals that will make a transformational impact on our towns and cities – helping direct investment and align with complementary skills and infrastructure strategies.

“It is great to see that government supports our approach and will invest in Innovation Accelerators as part of its strategy to increase the proportion of R&D funding outside London and the South East.”

Ron Emerson, former founding chair of the British Business Bank and chair of Manchester-based Bank North, welcomed the emphasis on devolution to deliver on levelling-up in place of a top-down approach. He said:

“The last thing we need from government is a template – one size fits all.

“The White Paper goes some way in recognising this by encouraging more local mayoralties with the promise of more devolved powers.

“All of the UK regions are different; they have different histories and cultures and therefore different challenges and opportunities, so only they can define what is needed from government and what they can and need to do for themselves by taking control of their agendas.”

EY’s North Markets Leader, Stephen Church, was broadly positive of proposals, but called for government to accelerate taking action before the longer-term economic impact of the pandemic took hold in the region:

Our latest Regional Economic Forecast report shows that while the economic bounce of a post-pandemic recovery will help, London is on course to pull ahead once again after 2025, together with their working-age population set to grow whilst the North’s is forecast to shrink. If the North is to keep up with the capital in the long-term, these promises must be actioned now.

“Despite the hopeful bounce-back predicted across the North, there must be an even spread of growth across the region: while our cities are major hubs of activity, decision-makers need to ensure towns also benefit and aren’t left behind.

“Long-term commitment and action are needed to create good jobs with decent wages, which will in-turn flow back into the local economy.

“Only with action will the maximum economic impact for the North be unlocked, and close the persistent productivity gap between north and south.”

The full Levelling Up White Paper is available to read here.