MANCHESTER, England, Jan 24 (Reuters) – Britain should take a lesson from Germany to address the huge disparities between the wealthy southeast of England and elsewhere, leaders of northern English cities and regions said on Tuesday.
Academics have long singled out Britain for high levels of regional inequality compared to other advanced economies, but the issue has gained new political traction in light of soaring inflation and collapsing public health and transport services.
Former prime minister Boris Johnson made “levelling up” Britain a flagship policy in 2019. While his successors have also vowed to tackle regional inequality, local leaders say there has been scant progress.
Mayors and civic leaders from the north of England, in a joint statement on Tuesday, called on London to “hard-wire” levelling up into British law, echoing Germany, where the constitution guarantees equivalent living standards.
“Germany shows us what can be done when you hard-wire legal guarantees to tackle inequalities and empower local leaders into the fabric of your country,” said Andy Burnham, mayor of Greater Manchester.
“East Germany has seen long-term support and investment since the fall of communism – and it has worked. Cities in Eastern Germany are now powering ahead of cities here in the North.”
The northern leaders criticised Britain’s current system for requiring towns and regions to bid against each other for the allocation of funds. Questions have also been raised by opposition lawmakers and academics about “pork barrel” ministerial interference in funding decisions, whereby lawmakers secure funding for their own constituencies.
Residents in the vast majority of places outside of London feel their local area has declined in recent years, according to a YouGov poll published last week – a major challenge for Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, whose Conservative Party has been in power since 2010 and now trails in opinion polls.
Sunak has said levelling up will be defined by the action the government is taking, and last week pointed to more than 100 local projects under way.
The minister for levelling up, Michael Gove, is due to address a “Convention of the North” in Manchester on Wednesday.
Reporting by Andy Bruce; Editing by Susan Fenton
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