‘State of the North’ report highlights how region is being shortchanged - The Yorkshire Post says

IPPR North’s ‘State of the North’ report, which puts the North of England in an international context, shows that if the region were its own country, out of all OECD countries only Greece would see less public and private investment.

This is a Greece that was considered the sick man of Europe not long ago. A country that is still recovering from the debt crisis that crippled its economy.

But what this report really highlights is the regional inequalities within the country. Productivity is around £7 lower per hour worked in the North than the England average.

That is what levelling up was supposed to address but failed to do so. Instead the agenda became a vehicle for the Government to dole out piecemeal offerings, with Tory seats being awarded significantly more money per person in the latest funding round.

Yorkshire’s share in the second round of funding was just 5.8 per cent, down from the 11 per cent in the first round - the biggest fall of any region. In context of this report, Yorkshire should be one of the regions getting the lion’s share not mere scraps from the table.

As IPPR North’s report highlights, systematic underinvestment in the things that would enable growth, like research and development, social infrastructure and transport, alongside huge inequalities, are holding the North and the UK back.

If the Government looked at Yorkshire as a region of opportunity, it would see that on many levels the region is ripe for levelling up.

Whether that be through industry, culture, transport investment or a combination of all three.