Andy Burnham, Mayor of Greater Manchester, vowed to devolve power to regional governments and establish a "No. 10 North" office in Manchester.
The proposal seeks to rebalance the distribution of resources in the UK by shifting control away from Westminster. By granting regions greater authority over planning, welfare, and housing, the plan aims to provide a Labour alternative to trickle-down economics.
Speaking Monday at the Manchester People's History Museum, Burnham (Labour) detailed a 10-year economic plan [1]. The initiative focuses on rewiring the national infrastructure to empower local leadership. He said, "No. 10 North will be the nerve centre of a rewired Britain."
Central to the strategy is a significant investment in public infrastructure. Burnham promised the launch of what he described as "the biggest council house building programme since the post-war period" [2]. This push for housing is paired with proposed welfare reforms intended to give regional governments more direct oversight of social support systems.
The plan also targets the existing planning system. Labour has vowed to implement seismic reforms to how land is developed, and managed, to accelerate growth outside of London.
Not all political figures have welcomed the proposal. Kemi Badenoch said the ideas were "old hat" [3].
Burnham's vision for a secondary center of government in Manchester is designed to ensure that the North of England has a permanent, high-level presence in the decision-making process of the state. The move would represent a fundamental shift in the UK's centralized governance model, one that has historically favored the southeast.
“"No. 10 North will be the nerve centre of a rewired Britain"”
The proposal for 'No. 10 North' represents a strategic attempt to institutionalize devolution in the UK. By creating a physical and administrative hub in Manchester, Burnham is pushing for a structural change in British governance that would reduce the reliance on London for regional economic development and social policy. If implemented, this would shift the UK from a highly centralized state toward a more federalized system of regional autonomy.
