Government more interested in North. Do we agree?

[DameLucy]

So I saw a snippet on the news that people in the South are upset because the North seems to be getting more help from the government lately. What’s our thoughts on this? I’m actually from the South and living in the South and I’m feeling pretty ashamed at this comment.
Thoughts. Am I being unreasonable?

From the north and live in the North, worked in London for a bit. All I can say is, the understanding of what the North is, is inconsistent.

I am in the North East, and I can reliably inform that we have not, nor have had any investment in my lifetime. Yes there are murmurings of it now, but sceptical me thinks its political fodder. Show me actual, real, can see with my eyes the commitment and investment to local economy.

The North can be Manchester, can be Newcastle, can be Northumberland, but sadly we get left out, hs2 was meant to connect the North, doesn't come within a 200 mile radius.

That said, we are a powerhouse and there is a majority of employment in public sector here. I don't understand why head offices are not here and remain in the most expensive square footage in the country.

I do hope that working from home, and proving that being physically in an office is not necessary, the one good from covid, turns the tables and becomes a national workspace. Giving way more opportunity to a load more folks than previously.

Not everyone from the north east city of Durham, for example, is wealthy. Dominic Cummings doesn't represent everyone from the area. It's mixed just like everywhere else.

Same goes for Rishi Sunak's north east constituency of Richmond, North Yorkshire.
Very affluent area, yes, but there will be pockets of deprivation amongst the wealth.

Aye. The streets are suddenly paved in gold, up here. I can understand the feigned mild consternation.

am in the North East, and I can reliably inform that we have not, nor have had any investment in

Fingers crossed for you that you don't get it. Affordable settled housing is priceless.
We can all see the devastating human cost of the 'investment' in London. It's in a housing emergency. The capital of homelessness. The consequences of 'opportunity'.

Nowhere needs 'levelling up' or 'investment'. Certainly not the sort that big cities like London (and now Manchester) have seen.

What's needed UK wide (but with most urgent priority in London) is social housing.

Genuinely affordable housing - that also offers flexibility. The opportunity to move around the country if someone wants to (but without being forced to).

The Andy Burnham article I linked to upthread explains some of why permanent full-time WFH would be bad for society. It's all interlinked. The knock on impact of the loss of office economies - the many related industries and livelihoods dependant on it - would be huge, and it would be felt across the UK.

Full-time WFH is only good for those privileged enough to live in a spacious comfortable WFH environment. And if you think people should just move somewhere cheaper, well aside from the impact on society of fractured families and communities, there's the very obvious issue that the area would no longer be somewhere cheaper if everybody moved there....

Social housing across the UK is the way to do true levelling up.

And wrt job opportunity. London's unemployment rate (particularly for the young) is the highest in the country.

So...no housing or jobs.

Sitting in the North, that's North of Manchester , South of Glasgow so could be the south depending on your view. Not seen any investment here lots of blue MP's but no investment for the big areas of deprivation. Towns all empty and no investment. Not feeling too sorry for the rich South but assume the poor South are like here. Perhaps we need a more unified approach looking at levelling up.all deprived areas.

The North has been shit on by the Tory party for years, I live in a area taking over by a Tory in the NE, we have a lot of Government departments moving here, looks good and sounds good but we have had our funding decreased year after year, no new schools, GP practices, infrastructure, hospitals, police, social care, all destroyed under them, yet the muppets in my town still voted Tory.

This has come out because of one bi election result and is totally hypothetical.

@BlatantlyNameChanged

What help, other than Boris's fine words, has the North actually had?

Our new Conservative MP - first one in 50 something years, won the seat in December 2019 - took some photographs of himself in front of some flytipped rubbish, standing on the seafront, and carrying a clearly empty box into a food bank. He seems to genuinely believe this has cured all of the problems within the constituency.

Yep my newly elected MP stood and had his photo took in front of Winston Churchill's statue when it had graffiti all over it, from the papers it looked like he had washed it off, truth is a shop worker finishing a night shift scrubbed it off without any fuss at all. My MP traveled back from London despite being told to isolate in London because of a positive Covid test, he came back on a packed train and told everyone just at the time Cummings was getting attention for being in the next town over from us. He goes against his constituents constantly, and apart from the Treasury coming here our town is and has always been in decline.

In every area that government funds the south east gets vastly more per capita than any other region. In arts and transport funding it's 5-10 times more. The south west is often as badly treated as the north.

This has been true under governments of both colours, though worse under the Tories.

The small changes made don't remotely equal that investment out, let alone favour the north.

We can all see the devastating human cost of the 'investment' in London. It's in a housing emergency.

This. The insane disproportionality doesn't help poor Londoners at all. We all benefit from forcing the government to invest on a much more even basis.

I saw this on the ITV news but the woman they interviewed who said it had a northern accent!

Might just add all (that I know of) our arts and culture is funded from charity. Whereas in the South, and by South I mean London and South of, there is a load more funding. Its not with bitterness I say this, its just plain facts. We are mighty proud of what we have, but it irks me to hear about investment in the North when as a pp has said the A1 is not even dualled North of Newcastle, its a horrible road to drive and really quite dangerous. Have lost count of the time its been mooted as part of a political campaign. To quote a film , show me the money! Our infrastructure needs updating, our arts need money, our families in need, need more.

From London and went to refuge in north couldn't cope for lots of reasons and mental health already bad but worse cos of fear of being hated for my accent. In north was so much support and help and social services and mental health crisis team. When back home no support nothing nowhere to turn. When first tried to leave after serious violence was told by London domestic abuse organisation no help for me to rehouse and to just call police if emergency and couldn't do that as better be killed quickly than homeless. Then when back from refuge social services back home ignored referral from social services in refuge area. They were meant to help rehousing cos disability but they don't help and told me to just leave and obviously can't cos no housing if disability benefits in London. Victim Support you need help violence being risk of being killed. When in north they reply in one or two days. Six weeks wait to just talk to case worker in London. No help no support if you need it in London. Mental health crisis in north came out same day and in London they tell you to just go to a&e. Sorry don't think all perfect in north wasn't rich area but they have help for people who need it. Maybe London different from rest of South don't know but bad being from London if vulnerable and need help.

@BlatantlyNameChanged

What help, other than Boris's fine words, has the North actually had?

Our new Conservative MP - first one in 50 something years, won the seat in December 2019 - took some photographs of himself in front of some flytipped rubbish, standing on the seafront, and carrying a clearly empty box into a food bank. He seems to genuinely believe this has cured all of the problems within the constituency.

Ian Levy?