Northern powerhouse project: Researchers predict widening of North-South economic divide
Chancellor George Osborne’s plan to create a “northern powerhouse” has been dealt a blow as a new report estimates that the gap between London and the rest of the UK is set to widen.
London’s economy is forecast to grow 27 per cent over the next decade, according to a report from law firm Irwin Mitchell and the Centre for Economics and Business Research (CEBR).
The capital’s expected growth rate is almost twice that predicted across the North East, North West and Yorkshire and the Humber.
“Significant announcements to spread growth across the UK have been surprisingly lacking to date,” said Scott Corfe from the CEBR. “More radical measures are needed to generate a series of regional powerhouses.”
The research noted that London infrastructure spending per person is the highest in the UK.