Margaret Thatcher's favourite think tank, the Centre for Policy Studies, has published a new report suggesting what they call a Northern Bang - aimed at the Tory Red Wall seats.
Let's ignore the fact that they want to favour these seats over those in Wales, Northern Ireland and Scotland. Instead let's note that this is all the usual right-wing nonsense, including relaxing planning rules, providing state subsidies to big, foreign-owned businesses whilst ignoring those already based here, and reformed tax reliefs, for which there is absolutely no evidence of success in encouraging new investment.
This is a Northern Whimper delivered by a think tank right out of ideas, but which still knows that its real purpose is to shovel wealth upwards from taxpayers to those who own and run large companies.
The CPS report is here https://www.cps.org.uk/
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Is this the Northern Powerhouse rebadged ?
Pretty much
The sort of policy that worked so well for River that in the end they even left off the Rover badge
I really should try and slow down a bit when reading. My first thought on seeing that headline was ‘What Northern Ireland Bung?.
Sorry.
🙂
Political confetti.
And we know who’ll have to sweep it up afterwards.
Levelling up the North got off to a stonking start a couple of weeks ago without causing too much upset. The government allocated £750 million to the rail link between Oxford and Cambridge, two remarkably deprived areas of the country, for a railway that won’t actually be electrified (the package says batteries not included). In addition they allocated a massive £35 million to improve rail services in the North, only a factor of 20 smaller! It tells all you need to know about the northern whimper!
Agreed
Further to Craig’s comment, the rail community are up in arms that the Oxford & Cambridge line will not be electrified. That such a travesty could be planned today is beyond parody.
This lot – government is too respectful a term- even get their hindsight from peering over a hedge!
The north of England has, possibly, suffered more throughout the neoliberal era, than Scotland.
The need for every U.K. government, including Maggie’s, to at least pretend to be doing something in Scotland, along with the Barnet formula, and our own legal system has (had?) been a slight buffer. It is also an indicator of how Scotland could become a normal independent EU nation, (unless we decide to adopt the Growth Commission plans in a weird desire to go from independent state to failed state as quickly as possible) because if Scotland was worthless to Westminster, none of these U.K. governments would have bothered.
I mention this because U.K. governments both red and blue, had no inclination to do anything about the north of England. It is always going to be part of England. It’s a Labour heartland, so Labour could take it for granted. It’s a Labour heartland, so the Tories could pillage it at will, for their rich City chums and Privateering Shadow State (I do like that term). Sheer desperation after years of austerity, stoked by lies both economic and cultural, has culminated in the north voting for their actual oppressors.
What other choice had they? Labour failed them, became RedTories, London centric and unwilling to reform First Past The Post. The Tories milked Labour’s failure, and lied their way to controlling the north. The Liberals are just a joke. The last time they were actually the Liberal party was about 1918. There’s no independent north party, because, well, it’s not Scotland. Nor is it Wales. It’s the north of England.
This seems obvious but actually if there’s not a North of England Party, why not? There should be. They should be campaigning for local government with at least the powers of the Welsh Assembly. They should unashamedly be campaigning for progressive policies for the north and only the north. They should be there to speak out against reports like this from the Centre for Policy Studies. It wouldn’t mean the north somehow wants to abandon England. Just abandon Westminster, which has failed them utterly.
I don’t live in the North of England. Never have. I’m sure there are nuances and complexities about voting there that I’m unaware of. I’m not claiming to be an oracle. However it does strike me that the north of England and Scotland have certain similarities but Scotland at least has a devolved parliament. The north of England has …what exactly?
Gordon McKendrick: Where exactly would you propose to draw this new border cutting off this entity to be called the North of England from the rest of England? And what criteria would you use for the line of division?
David Lowry: Scotland has a devolved form of government, but is not ‘cut off’ from the rest of the U.K.. With EVEL meaning only representatives of English constituencies deciding on this issue, I’m sure they could work out the details of which powers to be devolved, over which area. If any of this was to happen then I feel there needs to be a local political party to drive it. England could just carry on as is, and this is what I suspect shall happen. The results shall be the same too in that case.
Agreed.
To add to the constructive proposals at the end on the Green New Deal, I suggest the North – and everywhere – needs to be prioritising the ‘Foundational Economy’ – focussed on health, care, education, housing, utilities, food supply and other basic services.
https://foundationaleconomy.com
https://foundationaleconomycom.files.wordpress.com/2020/08/fe-approach-2020.pdf
I wondered if you had any views on this?
Regards
Andrew Sayer
In broad terms, I have no problem with the ideas in this, as far as I have read them