For 12 years of Tory rule swathes of Yorkshire fell further behind London in disposable income, figures show

The data shows that from 2010 to 2022 swathes of Yorkshire fell further behind London and the South East.

Disposable income is the amount of money households have after paying tax, and experts use it to show the strength and health of an economy.

It includes the money people have to pay on their rent or mortgage, and for food and bills.

In 2022, the latest year in which figures were calculated, Yorkshire and the Humber’s disposable income per head was £19,249, the second lowest in England after the North East.

In West Yorkshire, from 2010 to 2022, a household’s disposable income increased by just £170 when accounting for inflation, which is less than 1 per cent.

In South Yorkshire, it was only slightly higher - with a 2.5 per cent increase in disposable income in real terms over the 12-year period.

While York and North Yorkshire saw a 6.5 per cent rise accounting for inflation.

When compared to London and the rest of the UK, the figures are even more stark.

In both West Yorkshire and South Yorkshire, the rate of disposable income per head has grown much more slowly when compared to the rest of the country from 2010 to 2022.

It has also dropped relatively in Greater Manchester, however in York and North Yorkshire there was a slight rise in relation to the UK average.

Despite Mr Johnson’s levelling up agenda, disposable income has increased significantly in London over those years.

It’s gone from being 34 per cent higher than the rest of the country to 42 per cent greater than the UK average.

Henri Murison, chief executive of the Northern Powerhouse Project, told the Yorkshire Post:

“There is no way to change these trends without first getting productivity up - which means infrastructure and wider long term investment in our schools and skills.

“Here in Yorkshire, we have some heartening productivity performance in wider ONS statistics over the last couple of decades - particularly in West Yorkshire and in the most recent period also in the East Riding of Yorkshire which with its neighbour Hull is in the waiting room for devolution.”

While Zoe Billingham, director of IPPR North, said: “People need to feel the impact of regional rebalancing in their pockets.

“The latest ONS figures on disposable income show that for many in Yorkshire and The Humber action to 'level up' under the previous government has not yet shifted the dial.

“Not only does the region start from a lower base compared to others, it's also growing more slowly compared to other regions in England.”

In 2019, Mr Johnson was elected on a promise to level up England, winning swathes of Northern seats from Labour.

One of the key policies was to allocate central government funds to councils for specific projects, however cash-strapped local authorities spent at least £27 million producing bids, with many not being awarded a penny from the government.

Dozens of the most deprived areas in England were left out of the second round of the Levelling Up Fund (LUF), while three of the least deprived areas were awarded funding, including Richmond in Rishi Sunak’s constituency.

The IPPR North’s State of the North report found that the UK is “the most regionally divided country and getting worse”, with systematic underinvestment in infrastructure, transport, research and development holding the North of England back.

Ms Billingham added: “One measure of the success of the new Labour government will be in how successful they are at changing the course of regional inequalities in income and wealth over the coming years."

Sir Keir Starmer’s party won back almost the entire so-called Red Wall in July, and the words “levelling up” were removed from the government department responsible for housing and communities.

At the time, Angela Rayner, the Deputy Prime Minister and the Secretary of State in charge of the department, said: “A Government of public service means fixing the fundamentals to deliver for the British people.

“No more gimmicks and slogans, but the hard yards of governing in the national interest.”

Labour hopes that by widening and deepening devolution to Yorkshire’s mayors and local authorities it can boost growth in the region.