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...and "Beyond Recession" recommends budgetary devolution
Published: 2010-02-02 15:41:02
Whatever the outcome of the forthcoming election, one thing is beyond doubt: there will be less cash for the regeneration pot. The question for local authorities that want to maintain buoyant and growing economies is what can be done to meet their goals.
One answer is to give local government greater control of revenue. Another is to change the focus from local authority projects to regional regeneration and development programmes.
That's according to "Beyond Recession", a report produced this month by England’s eight core cities with the Work Foundation, drawing on work done by forecasting agency Oxford Economics. Only a different approach to investment, said the authors, will avoid a return to urban decline, jobless growth and 2008 levels of employment for a decade.
"Moving to a different, locally empowered relationship in specific policy areas, not only can public finance savings be realised, but outcomes can be greatly improved," the report said. Over a decade, this could generate:
• 752,500 more jobs;
• 98,500 fewer unemployed; and
• £33.5 billion more GVA.
The report focused on achieving higher skills levels, increasing productivity, economic recovery and growth, ultimately becoming more competitive internationally.
"However, cities are constrained by a centralised bureaucracy in England," the authors said. "Our cities directly control approximately 5% of the total taxation raised in them. Our direct competitors like Barcelona, Turin, Lyon and others control an average 35%, in some cases much higher. They also have advanced city-region working arrangements across administrative boundaries."
What could be achieved in the UK is seen in city region pilots at Manchester and Leeds. "The next Government must see a concerted effort to decentralise and empower our greatest and most capable cities to create jobs and economic growth, translating this into greater inclusion," said the report.
Four challenges
Whatever economic trends unfold over the coming decade, the report says that the UK will face four key challenges under any economic circumstances:
1. Long term sectoral shift - adapting to a 'knowledge' economy.
2. Skills and employment – reducing the impact of a decade of jobless growth.
3. Long term future – sustainability, climate change and pressure on infrastructure, energy and other resources.
4. Investment and public expenditure constraints.
The report concluded with a set of recommendations for action and joint activity between these cities, their authorities, universities, hospitals and businesses to plan now to meet these challenges for the future.
About the Core Cities Group
The Core Cities Group has worked collectively for more than a decade to influence urban policy. It includes Birmingham, Bristol, Liverpool, Leeds, Manchester, Newcastle, Nottingham and Sheffield. The leadership of these cities includes all three parties, who work together on a joint economic agenda. They have influenced policy and legislation, and created a change in thinking, from seeing cities as problems to regarding them as solutions. Together with their urban areas they represent:
• 16 million residents (a third of the population)
• 27% of the economy (more than London)
• 28% of the workforce qualified to NVQ level 4 and beyond
• Half of our research universities
They also have large concentrations of deprivation, high numbers of adults with no qualifications and collectively, around twice as many Job Seekers Allowance claimants as London.
"Cities are vital to avoiding the lowest scenario and helping the UK as far as possible to achieve the higher outcome," the group stated. "We argue that cities can be supported to achieve this through a more devolved approach, based on aligned joint investment and commissioning at a meaningful spatial level – the city region."
The full report will be available in February from www.corecities.com