I am lucky to a member of several excellent policy groups. (Nearly) universal response has been positive to today's devo statement to assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/6a6c7a...

My immediate thoughts on today's Devolution Document It's a huge set of proposals that will fundamentally change British politics and the national economy Making mayors accountable for growing their taxbase + committing to giving them what they need to do this is a gamechanger Thread:

Centre for Cities@centreforcities.bsky.social · 5d ago

Quick analysis from @antbreach.bsky.social. 1/ Proposals = biggest transfer of power from national to local government in the history of the state.

The Prime Minister plans to 'rewire the state' and give more power to councils and mayors, who are better placed to deliver locally catered economic policy. Income tax sharing to mayors will be key to this. The UK is the most fiscally centralised country in the G7, holding back wages and growth.

It must help hugely that Burnham was previously MCR mayor - so understands completely the levers that can be more immediately pulled and the dysfunctionalities caused by misalignment of areas of authority. His Westminster predecessors will have lacked any attention to this sort of crucial detail.

Allowing mayors to keep a share of local income tax is unashamedly pro-growth and will remove anchors that have held back the UK’s cities for decades. It will be the most significant and welcome transfer of fiscal powers since the foundation of the modern welfare state.

The tax retention news is so big it has overshadowed some of chunky stuff in the press release that complements it and fills out the devolution strategy pursued by the new PM. Some initial reactions by me and some @centreforcities.bsky.social thinking below to get you started 👇

Stephen Bush@stephenkb.bsky.social · 6d ago

This is a great move:

Read not just for the title (pretty happy with that one) but for what the trials and tribulations Burnham went through for the MBacc tells us about his national policy plans and where devolution in the skills space still has further to go

Centre for Cities@centreforcities.bsky.social · 6d ago

MBacc to the future: Andy Burnham's latest schools proposal builds on ideas already being tested through the Greater Manchester Baccalaureate. The MBacc offers lessons not just on technical education, but on devolution too👇 buff.ly/Pca3DPj

We've got the biggest by-election in UK history happening tomorrow. We at @centreforcities.bsky.social have got you covered on the details 👇 Here's what the incoming Greater Manchester Mayor should focus on:

This would be the most important local finance reform since Elizabeth I. Finally introducing local revenue sources that aren't property taxes will ensure places really benefit from local growth - more jobs and/or higher wages in a place will translate into more investment and services:

Brian Groom@groomb.bsky.social · 2w ago

Burnham plans to give England's 14 regional and metro mayors a share of income tax revenue to spend on their cities. Unclear whether this will need legislation, or whether 'equalisation measures' will be needed to prevent poorer regions from losing out.

Anyone trying to work out what ‘reindustrialisation’ means (including which sectors) and how the skills system and devolution might support it, should read this speech from Andy Burnham a few months ago (given while still GM Mayor). www.greatermanchester-ca.gov.uk/news/mayor-s...

Home

Devolving control of skills and technical education can unleash the economic potential of the North

greatermanchester-ca.gov.uk

Excellent piece this. So glad the AMRC got a spotlight here. Curious to see what Burnham defines as “industry.” Notably, the GM reindustrialisation plan includes sectors like creative, digital and life sciences. The new government should include both production and services in that definition.

Jennifer Williams@jenwilliamsft.bsky.social · 3w ago

A bit from me about what Burnham may mean by “redindustrialisation” as.ft.com/r/afe5abd3-4...

Amazing chart from my colleagues. Just 32 per cent of London's revenue funding comes from taxes – the smallest share of any G7 primary city. The GLA raises just $955 per person in revenue funding each year from taxes. In New York it’s x10 this. Briefing out today:

This is a nice piece from @yz18.bsky.social on getting caught up in the semantics of Burnham's speech. Based on how he's talked about 'reindustrialisation' as GM mayor, it's clear that this is not a backward-looking policy - far more aligned with the current Industrial Strategy (a good thing!)

Centre for Cities@centreforcities.bsky.social · 3w ago

Some have described Andy Burnham's focus on reindustrialisation as backwards looking. But his wider argument points towards expanding tradable sectors across both manufacturing and high-value services 👇️ buff.ly/qfZUuYA

Much done, still more to do. Ahead of the first ever mayoral by-election, @xuanrulin.bsky.social summarises the tasks ahead for the next Manchester Mayor: 🎯Grow city centre strengths 🎯Bee Network rail 🎯More participation through devolved skills policy 🎯Densification in the urban core

Centre for Cities@centreforcities.bsky.social · 3w ago

What should Greater Manchester's next mayor prioritise? Greater Manchester has grown faster than any other city region since 2017. But its next mayor will need to go further to keep that momentum going👇️ buff.ly/kn8ydSZ

Having ticked off Newcastle this week, Leicester and Bradford are the biggest not yet visited. I'm now up to 36/63 of the cities we at @centreforcities.bsky.social look at. For anyone needing guidance these are the rules we play by!

kylie4Bob@kayfourbee.bsky.social · last mo.

This is quite a good one for people to think about - what's the biggest UK city you haven't been to? Mine is Liverpool, but daughter likely going to University there so that will change.

The railway used to have a load of nonsense brands (e.g. Great Northern, which only served the south or South Western, which didn't go to Cornwall and barely Devon). But the GBR future looks like being even worse. My blog post is on why needs a brand strategy to focus back on customers.

GBR Urgently needs a Brand Strategy — Freewheeling

The trains are being painted but it’s not yet clear what the brand is meant to mean. Brand strategy is not an afterthought - it’s a fundamental driver of customer experience. It should be one of the ...

freewheeling.info

Where I argue Burnham's place-based experience and emphasis on local, public control is the right perspective to bring to national transport policy. This will be crucial to shape GBR to the new devolved policy landscape and to get DfT/industry out of 'joining up the national train-set' mindframe

Centre for Cities@centreforcities.bsky.social · last mo.

It is local transport, particularly within big cities, where the UK underperforms. Burnham’s place-based perspective on transport is a good starting point for national policy. Read more 👇 buff.ly/j3z6l3r

Still digesting yesterday's speech? Well, there were a couple of well-timed @centreforcities.bsky.social outputs last week that we think make great accompaniments. Short 🧵 👇

Andy Burnham wants to take "power out of the centre and put it in the hands of the people who can use it best". Guaranteeing mayor's a share of the tax generated in their area will be key to making this happen. Check out Centre for Cities new briefing for more detail: tinyurl.com/yjvpd7rb

The Government needs big cities to deliver its growth mission. Our latest report looks at the strengths and challenges facing each of the UK's big cities, and what they mean for policymakers. Read the full report below, or start with my blog on the key findings: lnkd.in/eVg_wepW

Centre for Cities@centreforcities.bsky.social · last mo.

🚀NEW REPORT | Big Cities Outlook The UK's largest cities should be at the heart of the Government's growth mission. They are home to 16% of the population, but account for 19% of knowledge-intensive business services jobs. Explore the report👇 buff.ly/mxLwAeJ

wish there was more engagement with the distinction between "net zero is bad" and "the UK leading the way on net zero is bad". former is nonsense talking from barely reformed climate denialists but the latter deserves a better answer than "oh you like climate change do you?"

As @jamesdaustin.bsky.social says we found young people in towns like Burnley, the ones doing the working(!), were much less likely to want the return of manufacturing Instead people understood the success of Manchester and wanted a part of it with better transport links

James Austin@jamesdaustin.bsky.social · 2mo ago

Plus those advocates are younger and more likely to vote left. Once again a smaller, but louder, group of voters driving things

TfL's plans are a template for how other metro mayors should start thinking about their upcoming road powers in the context of their integrated transport plans. Even the best version of Bee Network buses will still get stuck in the Manchester morning peak traffic if these measures are ignored!

Centre for Cities@centreforcities.bsky.social · 2mo ago

London buses are slowing down and @tflondon.bsky.social has a plan to reverse this. On the blog, new road powers in other big cities are crucial to improving transport in the rest of England, too 👇 buff.ly/Fn6c3L5

My latest blog: what is TfL doing about bus speeds? And how can other metro mayors learn from the plans? The takeaway is: serious integrated transport in big cities is a carrot and stick approach - ignore restrictions on private vehicles in congested areas at the expense of bus performance!

Slow buses: Big cities should take note of TfL’s answer to London bus speeds - Centre for Cities

TfL’s road strategy shows why road powers are central to improving London bus speeds and big city transport.

centreforcities.org

Clue's in the name - focusing on big cities will lead to big national impacts. Come join us next week where we take you through why a government going for national economic growth should focus on the UK's largest urban areas, and how it feeds through to living standards 👇

Report launch - Big Cities Outlook - Centre for Cities

How are the UK's largest cities performing, and what does this mean for the national economy?

centreforcities.org

Centre for Cities@centreforcities.bsky.social · 2mo ago

What would be the potential benefits if big cities matched the productivity performance of their international peers? 🌏

Both have seen big reductions in deprivation. Focus in Manchester is on transport, while Liverpool have made strides in skills. But the underlying ingredients are the same: inclusion (through access to opportunities) and, crucially, underpinned by growth. It's the emphasis that differs.

Centre for Cities@centreforcities.bsky.social · 2mo ago

Do cities have to choose between growth and inclusion? Manchester and Liverpool suggest the answer is no. Different local strategies have helped reduce deprivation while supporting economic growth. Read more 👇 buff.ly/S0M36Wb

Good chat tying in a lot of things swimming around in the political discourse recently: deprivation, growth, Manchesterism, NEETs... Hopefully an interesting listen as we try to make sense of it all in the context of our big cities!

Centre for Cities@centreforcities.bsky.social · 2mo ago

🎙️Growth is back at the centre of politics. But who actually gets access to it? On the podcast, we discuss deprivation, youth worklessness and what cities need to do to turn growth into opportunity. Listen now 🎧👇

If you missed our thoughts on last week's Milburn Review and what role cities have in tackling England's youth employment challenges, check out the thread below 👇

Rob Johnson@rjson.bsky.social · 2mo ago

Our quickfire thoughts on what the Milburn review means for cities and how the Govt should think about the opportunities for young people in its urban agenda. As an aside, refreshing to go through a 200+ page Review that is so incisive and well-written 🤯 Thread to follow 👇

See our work two years ago (!) showing this for hybrid working in central London. Young workers are keenest to be in the office. They have most to learn from senior colleagues - who prefer being at home, but may not be appreciating the externalities... www.centreforcities.org/publication/...

Financial Times@financialtimes.com · 2mo ago

John Burn-Murdoch: ‘The rise of WFH has been a boon for thirtysomethings who are safely on the career conveyor belt. But it has hit the youngest workers twice: slowing their climb up the career ladder and keeping some out of the labour market entirely’ ft.trib.al/gMQAQTq

Our quickfire thoughts on what the Milburn review means for cities and how the Govt should think about the opportunities for young people in its urban agenda. As an aside, refreshing to go through a 200+ page Review that is so incisive and well-written 🤯 Thread to follow 👇

Centre for Cities@centreforcities.bsky.social · 2mo ago

More than one million young people are now not in education, employment or training. Our response to the Milburn Review argues that place matters, and that cities will be central to any long-term solution to the NEET challenge 👇 buff.ly/Jfhvfd3