City mayors back on the agenda

CHANCELLOR George Osborne has resurrected the notion of elected city mayors, but is offering more power this time around.

Speaking at an event at Manchester’s Museum of Science and Industry yesterday, the Chancellor said the Northern cities needed “true power” to become economic powerhouses.

He said he wanted to start a conversation about “serious devolution of powers and budgets”.

The speech also floated the idea of a high speed rail line between Manchester and Leeds, and greater investment in science and technology.

He said focusing on these three areas would help create a “Northern powerhouse” to match the economic might of London.

Two years ago voters in Leeds  and Bradford rejected the notion of a mayor for the city, while the idea was embraced in Salford and Liverpool.

These regional mayors do not have the same clout as Boris Johnson in London who is responsible for transport and crime.

Mr Osborne said he wanted to give similar powers as those held by Johnson and spoke of a Greater Manchester mayor for the first time.

He said: “Today I am putting on the table and starting the conversation about serious devolution of powers and budgets for any city that wants to move to a new model of city government – and have an elected mayor.

A mayor for Greater Manchester. A mayor for Leeds. With powers similar to the mayor of London. What I’ve set out today is a vision of the Northern powerhouse – not to rival the South, but to be its brother in arms as we fight for Britain’s share of the global economy.”

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Osborne backs another Northern Catapult

THE Chancellor’s headline grabbing speech in Manchester yesterday also flagged up the importance of science and technology in the regional recovery – and suggested one of the new Catapult research centres should be based in the North.

Attention has focused on George Osborne’s willingness to devolve more powers to those cities that take on city mayors, and his backing for a high speed line between Manchester and Leeds.

But he also explained that the Treasury had set aside £7bn to invest in the next Parliament and he called for ideas from Northern universities on how to spend it.

He also said he would be “very disappointed” if one of the new Catapults – which are backed by the Technology Strategy Board and designed to match businesses with cutting edge research in various sectors – “doesn’t come to the North”.

Manchester Science Parks is understood to be bidding for the Precision Medicine Catapult – which would be worth £200m over five years – to be based at Alderley Park which is in Mr Osborne’s Tatton constituency. The other Catapult looking for a home is Energy Systems.

A decision is expected to be made later this year by the board of each Catapult after consulting with industry.

In his speech the Chancellor said: “I look at London and I see the largest research institute in Europe – the Crick Institute – being built.

“What’s the Crick of the North going to be? Materials science? Nuclear technology?
Something else? You tell me.

“Today I call on the Northern universities to rise to the challenge, and come up with radical, transformative long term ideas for doing even more outstanding science in the north – and we will back you.”

Seven Catapults are up and running and none of them are based in the North West. The High Value Manufacturing centre has a number of bases including Rotherham, Yorkshire, and Sedgefield, County Durham.