Revealed: How the North/South divide affects the UK economy

Published

1 year ago

January 25, 2023

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The North of England receives one of the lowest levels of investment among advanced economies, a think tank has said.

Greece would be the only OECD nation to see less public and private investment, if the region was a country, according to a new IPPR North report.

Researchers found the UK as a whole ranks 35th out of the 38 OECD countries in terms of receiving the least investment.

Slovakia, Poland and Hungary all enjoy more investment than the UK.

If the OECD average was applied to the UK for 2017 to 2020, £397bn more would have been invested.

The report said the UK and the North are being held back by “vast inequalities” and “systematic underinvestment” in research and development, social infrastructure and transport.

The extent of regional disparities is shown in the report, including how productivity is around £7 lower per hour worked in the North than the England average, while hourly pay is £1.60 lower than the rest of England.

Northern mayors, Levelling Up Secretary Michael Gove and Labour’s shadow levelling up secretary Lisa Nandy are all set to attend Convention of the North today – a gathering of business, political and civic leaders from the region.

Political leaders in the region will argue that levelling up the North and South should be “hard wired” into UK law as they call for more long-term funding as opposed to the current competitive bidding system.

Ms Nandy will accuse the Conservatives of having “written off” areas that once fuelled the UK economy, while Mr Gove will say his government has over “the greatest transfer of power form Whitehall to local leaders across England in modern times”.

Marcus Johns, IPPR research fellow and report author, said: “Of all the advanced economies around the world, ours is the most regionally divided and getting worse – the North is at the sharp end of these divides and that’s a barrier to prosperity.

“But what’s even more unacceptable is that our country is divided by design. It is the result of decisions.

“The North’s strengths are national strengths. Northern prosperity can be national prosperity.

“It’s up to the government to unlock this potential, by acknowledging that it has to change, and by enabling empowered, well-resourced local government to coordinate and deliver long-term local visions for change.”

The report highlights other places in the world that were struggling but have turned their economies around, such as Leipzig in Germany, which is now the fastest-growing city in Europe thanks to industry and investment.

IPPR North director Zoe Billingham said: “The international evidence is clear – governments that let go of power and collaborate positively with local places can succeed in levelling up.

“Political leaders need to ‘zoom out’ and learn lessons from our international neighbours to achieve regional growth and narrow our aching divides. We know that private investment follows public investment.”

After announcing the latest recipients of the government’s levelling up fund last week, ministers faced accusations of favouring more affluent southeastern seats at the expense of deprived northern areas.

A government spokesman said: “This report fundamentally misrepresents the clear steps we are taking to level up the region and we are committed to spreading opportunity across the whole of the UK, including the North of England.

“This includes investing £3.19bn through our levelling up funds for regeneration, transport and cultural projects and £3bn to transform local transport networks.

“The government has also helped secure inward investment, such as Credera in Manchester, Nissan in Sunderland and Equinor in the Port of Tyne, creating thousands of highly skilled jobs.

“We have also launched Freeports in Teeside, Liverpool City and the Humber to drive investment and signed new devolution deals in York and North Yorkshire and the North East, giving more powers to local leaders.”

World

Israel’s Benjamin Netanyahu rejects ceasefire deal that would ‘leave Hamas intact’

Published

7 hours ago

May 5, 2024

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Israel's Benjamin Netanyahu rejects ceasefire deal that would 'leave Hamas intact'

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has rejected ceasefire proposals because he says Hamas’s call for a withdrawal of all troops from Gaza and an end to the war is unacceptable.

Mr Netanyahu said agreeing to such proposals would “leave Hamas intact” and leave the possibility of another attack in future.

“Surrendering to the demands of Hamas would be a terrible defeat for the State of Israel,” he said in a video statement.

Mediated negotiations for a pause in the fighting in return for the release of hostages held by Hamas have been going on in Egypt, but a deal still appears some way off.

Hamas said in a statement on Sunday it’s “still keen to reach a comprehensive, interconnected agreement that ends the aggression, guarantees withdrawal, and achieves a serious prisoner exchange deal”.

The impasse comes after Egyptian media reported “noticeable progress” in ceasefire talks on Saturday.

The proposal mediators had put to Hamas set out a three-stage process for an immediate, six-week ceasefire and partial release of Israeli hostages, with some sort of Israeli pull-out in exchange.

More than 34,600 Palestinians have been killed and more than 77,000 have been wounded in Israel’s military operation, according to Gaza’s health ministry.

Israel has said it remains committed to a ground offensive in the southern city of Rafah, where more than a million have fled in search of safety, as it tries to wipe out Hamas.

The UN and others have warned of catastrophe if it goes ahead.

The war began in October after Hamas killed about 1,200 people, according to Israeli figures, when it launched a surprise attack.

More than 200 were abducted and many remain as hostages, while others are thought to have died.

World

Health warning issued as heatwave grips South and Southeast Asia

Published

1 day ago

May 4, 2024

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Health warning issued as heatwave grips South and Southeast Asia

Countries in South and Southeast Asia have been coping with a weeks-long heatwave which has seen record temperatures sweep parts of the region.

Pupils in the Philippines, India and Bangladesh have been told to stay at home and learn remotely due to a severe health risk.

Schools in Cambodia have also cut back on their hours.

Cambodia faces its hottest temperature in 170 years, according to meteorologists – as high as 43C (109F).

Bangkok in Thailand has reached 40C (104 F), but the heat index is said to have topped 50 C (122 F) due to the heat being trapped among the mass of buildings.

The United Nations Children’s Fund warned in April that the heat could put the lives of millions of children at risk and asked people who care for them to take extra precautions.

A spokesperson for UNICEF said around 243 million children were exposed to hotter and longer heatwaves.

They said the increased heat was “putting them at risk of a multitude of heat-related illnesses, and even death”.

Thirty people in Thailand have died from heatstroke in the past month, according to data from the country’s health ministry.

People are being advised to avoid outdoor activities and to stay hydrated.

Several towns in Myanmar were included on lists of the hottest spots globally last month, with temperatures reaching 48.2C (118F) in at least one case.

Parts of eastern India also experienced their hottest April on record.

Kerala, on India’s west coast, this week instructed all schools and colleges to close until Monday, while influencers in Bangladesh have encouraging people to plant trees in response to the record heat.

Benjamin Horton, director of the Earth Observatory of Singapore, said there were three factors for heatwaves: a naturally-occurring climate phenomenon known as El Nino, an increase in global temperatures, and human-induced climate change.

Brazil is currently experiencing another climate phenomenon – La Nina – with 39 dead and 68 missing in floods across the country.

More than 24,000 people have been forced to leave their homes due to the flooding.

Scientists believe the naturally-occurring phenomenon has intensified due to the impact of climate change.

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Philippine coastguard hits out at China’s ‘brute force’ after water cannon attack

Published

2 days ago

May 4, 2024

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Philippine coastguard hits out at China's 'brute force' after water cannon attack

China has been branded “a bully” and an international lawbreaker after its ships blasted Philippine vessels with water cannon in the South China Sea.

Sky News was on board the BRP Bagacay when a Chinese vessel fired water at it, causing significant damage.

Philippine coastguard spokesman Jay Tarriela told Sky News that this week’s confrontation was the first time China had used “such aggression” against their ships.

“The metal parts and the railing were bent. The canopy was also destroyed. So this came as a surprise for us that China never hesitated to use brute force,” he said.

“It completely justifies us calling The People’s Republic of China a bully country.”

The Philippine coastguard was on a resupply mission to the Scarborough Shoal to deliver food and fuel to Philippine fishermen when they were struck.

The submerged reef lies in disputed waters. China claims sovereignty over the reef but it is much closer to the Philippines and lies within its legally recognised exclusive economic zone.

The vessel Sky News was on board was the closest the coastguard had ever been to the shoal – just 600 metres away from it.

Asked if the mission to the shoal was a provocative move by the Philippine coastguard, Commodore Tarriela denied they were “poking the bear” but rather “driving the bear out of our own territory”.

The Philippines has been stepping up its patrols in the area under the instruction of President Bongbong Marcos, and reasserting its claim to the shoal in recent months.

It has raised the spectre of open conflict. While neither side currently wants that, there is now a greater threat of open conflict.

Asked what the end game was for the Philippines, Commodore Tarriela said their priority was to “tell the world” about China’s aggression.

He said their secondary goal was to ensure “like-minded states” also made China “fall in line and respect international law”.

“Otherwise, it’s everybody’s loss,” he added.

Philippine government policy is not to resist using water cannon against Chinese vessels – and Commodore Tarriela insisted that policy remains in place after the confrontation.

The government also remains intensely determined to protect the waters it believes it has every right to operate in.

“We’re not going to yield and we’re not going to surrender a square inch of our territory,” Commodore Tarriela insisted.

Beijing has called the action its own coastguard took as “necessary”.

Speaking at the Chinese foreign ministry’s daily news conference, spokesperson Lin Jian described the coastguard’s conduct as “professional, proper, and lawful”.