Latest news with #MarcusJohns
The Guardian
9 hours ago
- Business
- The Guardian
North of England lost out on £140bn for transport in ‘decade of deceit'
The north of England could have built the equivalent of seven Elizabeth lines with the transport funding it has missed out on during 'a decade of deceit', research shows. If the north had received the same per-person spending as London, it would have had an extra £140bn over the last 10 years, analysis of Treasury figures by the Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) and IPPR North has found. In the decade to 2022-23, London received £1,183 per person per year while the north got less than half of that – £486 of transport spending per person. The figure for the north-west was £540, there was £441 spent per person in Yorkshire and the Humber, and as little as £430 in the north-east. The East Midlands fared even worse, with an average of £355 per person spent – less than a third of that received by London. Marcus Johns, a senior research fellow at IPPR North, said: 'Today's figures are concrete proof that promises made to the north over the last decade were hollow. It was a decade of deceit. 'We are 124 years on from the end of Queen Victoria's reign, yet the north is still running on infrastructure built during her reign, while our transport chasm widens. This isn't London-bashing – Londoners absolutely deserve investment. But £1,182 per person for London and £486 for northerners? The numbers don't lie – this isn't right.' He added: 'Ministers have begun to restore fairness with their big bet on transport cash for city leaders. They should continue on this journey to close this investment gap in the upcoming spending review and decades ahead'. Last week the government announced what it called the biggest-ever investment in city local transport, after decades of underfunding. Rachel Reeves pledged to invest £15bn in the spending review this Wednesday to improve trams, trains and buses outside the capital, after rewriting Treasury investment rules to be able to increase spending on parts of the country that need it most. The announcement is thought to be one of a number ways the government is responding to the threat of Reform, as polls show the rightwing party is gaining ground across the UK, particularly outside major cities. But IPPR North said the government needed to go further. The thinktank is partnering with Jim O'Neill, a former Treasury minister and the chair of the Northern Powerhouse Partnership, to call for Great Northern Rail, a large-scale plan to build and improve rail networks across the north of England. Lord O'Neill said Reeves needed to use the spending. 'Good governance requires the guts to take a long-term approach, not just quick fixes,' he said. 'So the chancellor is right in her focus on the UK's longstanding supply-side weaknesses – namely our woeful productivity and weak private and public investment. 'Backing major infrastructure is the right call, and this spending review is the right time for the chancellor to place a big bet on northern growth and begin to close this investment chasm. But it's going to take more than commitments alone – she'll need to set out a transparent framework for delivery.'
Daily Mirror
14 hours ago
- Business
- Daily Mirror
Startling sum North missed out on for transport in 'decade of deceit'
Analysis by think-tank the IPPR found the North of England would have had an extra £140billion in transport cash if it was treated the same as London under the Tories The North of England would have had an extra £140billion of transport cash if it was treated the same as London under the Tories, damning figures show. New analysis reveals the Government spent £1,183 per person in the capital between 2010 and 2023 - compared to just £486 in the north. And it was even worse in the Midlands, where the figure was £455. Marcus Johns, senior research fellow at think-tank IPPR North - which crunched the numbers - said: 'Today's figures are concrete proof that promises made to the North over the last decade were hollow. It was a decade of deceit. "We are 124 years on from the end of Queen Victoria's reign – yet the North is still running on infrastructure built during her reign – while our transport chasm widens. This isn't London bashing - Londoners absolutely deserve investment. "But £1,182 per person for London and £486 for northerners? The numbers don't lie – this isn't right." The data shows £83billion of Government cash was spent on transport projects in the north since 1999/2000. The region with the lowest amount of investment over the period was the East Midlands with just £355 spent per person. Last week Chancellor Rachel Reeves announced a £15.6 billion package for mayoral authorities to use on public transport projects across the North and Midlands. This cash is expected to include funding to extend the metros in Tyne and Wear, Greater Manchester and the West Midlands. There will also be a renewed tram network in South Yorkshire and a new mass transit system in West Yorkshire. Labour's Local Transport Minister Simon Lightwood said: 'This report lays bare the way in which successive Conservative governments have short-changed areas outside of London and the south east, denying millions of people access to jobs, education and opportunity. ' Labour promised we would bring growth to every part of the country and we've put our money where our mouth is. As part of our Plan for Change we've announced more than £15 billion for local transport in England's city regions, delivering the biggest ever investment in buses, trams and local rail."
