Britain23 July, 20263 min read
Andy Burnham Opens No 10 North In Manchester To Accelerate Devolution And Growth
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No 10 North opens in Manchester; Burnham to work from there on day one. National Economic Council revived; ministers and regional mayors to convene to drive devolution.
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The Guardian“This was the beginning of No 10 North: the first major act of this government”
BBC“Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch has criticised his ambitions for being ‘too small’.”
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No 10 North opens
Andy Burnham declared that the era of Whitehall resisting devolution is "over for good" as he opened No 10 North in Manchester, saying it is "the biggest rebalancing of power our country has seen". The prime minister said he will work from No 10 North, located in Heron House near Albert Square, once a week during his premiership, and the building also houses GCHQ’s Manchester and North West hub. Burnham said No 10 North will be responsible for accelerating devolution and will drive reindustrialisation and growth across every postcode of the UK, while removing barriers to regeneration from council housebuilding to public transport infrastructure.
Ahead of his inaugural meeting, Burnham is scheduled to chair the first meeting of the National Economic Council, a cabinet committee established in 2008 to address economic challenges, and the government confirmed attendees will vary based on the agenda. The BBC also said Burnham will spend his first day working at the northern branch of Downing Street in Manchester, with ministers Lucy Powell and Louise Haigh also operating regularly from the new site.
National Economic Council
Burnham’s No 10 North plan centers on the revived National Economic Council, which he said will bring together senior ministers and regional mayors to put devolution at the centre of the government’s mission to make Britain better. In a statement carried by GOV.UK, the government said No10 North will be its new situation room for growth and will bring the levers of local economic growth and devolution together under one roof for the first time. The Guardian framed the move as a remaking of the British state 165 miles away from Downing Street, with Burnham writing that No 10 North will be responsible for accelerating devolution and will drive reindustrialisation and growth across every postcode of the UK.
The BBC reported that on Friday in Manchester Burnham will chair a meeting of the National Economic Council, and it said the shift will move strategic decisions about devolution and local economic growth out of the Treasury and out of Angela Rayner's Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government. The BBC also reported that Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch criticised Burnham’s ambitions as "too small" and urged him to tackle high energy costs for businesses as well as a gap in defence funding.
Cost-of-living and jobs
Alongside the No 10 North opening, the government said it would ease the cost of living with VAT off electricity bills from 1 October, a £2 cap on bus fares in England from January 2027, and a 20% cut in business rates for pubs, clubs and music venues in England from April 2027. GOV.UK said the VAT removal from domestic electricity bills from 1 October would save a typical household around £45 a year, and it said the business rates cut would benefit nearly 32,000 venues and be worth around £1,100 a year to a typical pub. The BBC reported that Burnham’s first week in power included announcing a 20% cut in business rates for pubs, social clubs and live music venues from April next year, while also noting his interventions aimed at easing the cost of living.
“The removal of VAT from domestic electricity bills from 1 October, saving a typical household around £45 a year.”
In Manchester, Burnham planned talks with business leaders including representatives of the Federation of Small Business, the Confederation of British Industry and the British Chambers of Commerce about how to generate growth and investment. The Independent added that Burnham faced scrutiny about whether his focus on the North might divert attention from other regions such as the East of England, and it quoted him saying the whole purpose of No 10 North is to put more power into every postcode in the land, including the postcodes of Harlow.