Speaking, perhaps inevitably, in his home base of Manchester, Britain’s prime minister-in-waiting Andy Burnham on Monday outlined a 10-year vision for the country that was heavy on plans to devolve power from Westminster, reindustrialise the economy and revive high streets. As a political exercise, it arguably hit the right notes. The central message will undoubtedly resonate with “left-behind” regions that have increasingly turned to Nigel Farage’s poll-leading Reform UK party. But whether Burnham’s radical localism will be enough to lift the country out of its long-running economic malaise is the bigger question.
An ambitious devolution plan can be part of the answer to driving faster productivity growth. The UK is one of the most fiscally centralised nations in the rich world. This contributes to its vast regional economic inequalities, and helps to explain why the country’s second cities lag so far behind their international peers. Greater regional autonomy would allow policy to be tailored more closely to local needs, while giving local authorities a stronger incentive to foster economic growth.
But how decentralisation is delivered matters, too. If local authorities are to drive growth they will need the resources, personnel and, above all, the right tax and spending tools. National levies will also need reforming. The taxes that many regions can currently tap for funding, including council tax and business rates, are poorly designed to begin with. Burnham will need to set out more detail beyond his gimmicky proposal for a “No 10 North” coordinating body — his plan to move part of the Downing Street operation to Manchester. Otherwise, his agenda risks becoming little more than a rebrand of previous governments’ unsuccessful attempts at “levelling up” regional economies.