Font: BBC
Former Chancellor George Osborne is to chair a new think tank aimed at taking forward his “Northern Powerhouse” plan. As chancellor, Mr Osborne championed the idea of creating an economy in the north of England to rival those of London and the South East. But there have been concerns that the project may go off the rails under PM Theresa May, who sacked Mr Osborne. Mr Osborne said the PM had committed to the vision but told the Sun: “We can’t just expect Whitehall to do it all.” “It has to be a team effort,” he told the newspaper. Mr Osborne, the MP for Tatton, in Cheshire, has returned to the backbenches following Mrs May’s cabinet reshuffle, and said chairing the new body – the Northern Powerhouse partnership – would “now be a major focus of my political energies”.
‘Add impetus’
BBC political correspondent Tom Bateman says it will be seen by some as an attempt to keep up pressure on Downing Street over what was Mr Osborne’s trademark policy. Earlier this month Labour’s mayoral candidates for Greater Manchester and the Liverpool city region urged Mrs May to “honour your promises to the north of England”, amid reports that she intends to shift the focus to other areas. Downing Street has denied any lack of commitment, saying Mrs May is building upon Mr Osborne’s project, and put Treasury aide Neil O’Brien in charge of it in her policy unit. She also appointed Andrew Percy, the MP for the Yorkshire and Lincolnshire constituency of Brigg and Goole, as her Northern Powerhouse minister.
Mr Osborne welcomed Mrs May’s support but said the new partnership would “add impetus” to the Northern Powerhouse project, which aims to devolve powers and funds to northern city regions, improve transport links and create new regional mayors to act as figureheads. Image captionThe Northern Powerhouse initiative aims to encourage economic growth outside of London The board of the not-for-profit organisation will include business figures from across the north of England, as well as political figures to ensure city leaders are represented.
The partnership says it aims to “maintain the momentum of the Northern Powerhouse” by commissioning specialist research and supporting local leaders and authorities “through innovative ideas and sharing examples of national and international best practice”. Mr Osborne said the idea he first raised in 2014 had attracted huge, cross-party support already, adding: “In the space of just two years, we’ve created powerful new mayors, committed to huge new transport and science projects and attracted investment from around the world. “There’s real excitement now in the North about what we can achieve if we work together. I don’t want us to lose that.”
‘Narrowly focused’
Earlier Lib Dem former Energy Secretary Ed Davey told the BBC that Mr Osborne and Mrs May – then chancellor and home secretary – had “really disliked each other” in cabinet, partly because they were both seen as rivals for the future Tory leadership. Mrs May signalled in a Yorkshire Post article earlier in the summer that she would press ahead with the Northern Powerhouse project – as well as making the Midlands an “engine for growth”. Communities Secretary Sajid Javid said the government “realises the huge untapped potential of our great northern towns and cities” and he hoped the new partnership would “become an important part of the debate”. Ed Cox, director of the Institute of Public Policy Research North said: “It remains to be seen whether this new think tank will develop an inclusive approach to the northern economy because, to date, George Osborne’s Northern Powerhouse has been too narrowly focused on big cities and metro mayors. “Vital as these are, they will not address the economic and social challenges raised by the Brexit vote.”
