general election

What good devolution looks like

This article originally appeared in the Local Government Chronicle.

Levelling up, powering up, reducing regional disparity – whatever you want to call it, the question of how we build an economy that works for the whole country has troubled political parties and policy makers of all stripes for decades. Yet, despite the problem having relative consensus across Westminster and attempts to tackle it being central to more than one programme for government, no one yet has managed to make much of a dent in the huge gaps between the geographical haves and have nots of the UK. Even this week, research from the IFS identified that the UK “has gone into reverse” on many metrics since the release of the Levelling Up White Paper, calling on the next government to take decisive action to reverse “glacial” progress on the agenda.

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  • MANIFESTO

    Our local economic future

    17th June 2024
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    • General election: resources for local economies

    Following the Prime Minister’s surprise announcement that there will be a General Election on 4 July, you may be wondering what that means for you and your work in local economies.

    We’re putting the final touches to our recommendations for what the next government should prioritise in its first 100 days, and a briefing for ministers on the great work being done by community wealth builders across the UK but in the mean time, we’ve collated some of our best resources for you to navigate the uncertainty.

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    The work toward building a local economy for all continues…

    Following the General Election the Conservatives are to form a minority government. There is now new uncertainty as to the stability of the new administration and questions as to the extent it will be able to focus on building an economy for everyone. However, whilst national politics and government are important, it’s worth reminding ourselves that that change does not begin and end in Whitehall.

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    An industrial strategy that works for all places?

    Theresa May has advocated stepping in to repair markets where they are not working, but will the first industrial strategy in a generation really deliver an economy that works for all places?

    We wrote back in January about how a modern industrial strategy needed to be backed up by a greater spatial and redistributive drive.  This advocated direct investment toward areas of the country, which were not just the ‘winners’ but were also being left behind. Indeed, the Confederation of British Industry (CBI), British Chambers of Commerce and the manufacturers’ organisation EEF urged the Government to boost living standards and improve productivity in the country’s poorest regions, adding that we must avoid the outdated ideas of “picking winners”. [1]

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