AIBU to wonder how a government can be based in Manchester?

[dottiedodah]

Andy Burnham is proposing to govern from Manchester when he starts on July 20th.How can this be so ? Surely all previous governments have been based in London?

Other forms of modern architecture are available…

Oh for goodness sake. Its one, new department not the whole government!!!! A department about devolution; run from a city that has successfully progressed devolution.

Ordinarily I would agree, if it was going to cost even tens of millions, but 40 BILLION pounds!!!!!

Is an old building more important than improving education, healthcare, defence etc?

Manchester is in the Midlands? 🤣 Oh dear. You obviously didn't pass your Geography GCSE.

My sarcasm hasn't translated. There are myriad reasons, but it's the obvious place as Manchesterism was developed there. My nephew studied medicine in Manchester and is determined to remain there, having resisted all encouragement to go to London.

What about Durham, Sheffield, Sunderland, Liverpool

Hope he books the super advanced tickets otherwise it’s going to sting for same day first class.

I think sometimes you have to wonder about the costs quoted for things.

The north west if England. The people of Inverness would like a word about how you define north.

Yes, Birmingham thinks its England’s second city, but its not really is it? This is one new department about devolution. Why not put it somewhere that has done devolution well? Makes absolute sense.

I was responding to the suggestion that the whole of Westminster closed up and moved to a new building.

Absolutely. As someone who lives in the north, the only reason I am able to use a mobile phone, the internet and sometimes even a computer is because there is a train line to London.

I say sometimes use a computer because our train line to London is not very good, it only runs every couple of hours at odd times and if you need to go to the office for before 10am on a weekday morning then you have to set off the night before and stop in one of those posh newfangled hotels. It also stops at 8pm at night leaving you stranded in London until 5am the next day.

The town over does not have a train line to London and they are stuck in the stone age, they only discovered fire last week. I am thankful for our inconvenient train for dragging us into the future.

I can only see positive for moving a section of the government to Manchester. The houses of parliament have been needing a refurb for a bit. It would be nice for MPs for political parties of all colours to experience life out of London and indeed have to travel out of London through the Midlands and the north and see issues that affect the Midlands/ north. Poor public transport connectivity, pockets of deprivation due to post industrial towns getting 0 investment, general lack of infrastructure investment ect.

South West- Plymouth, Exeter, Truro

Exactly. Still hoping Al Cairns throws in a challenge. I reckon he could make mincemeat of him. And maybe throw in Birmingham for a base just to piss him off 🤣

The same as it costs now for non-London based MPs to travel to Westminster, I believe.

Starmer was always only a temporary "front man" to make Labour electable. Many people forecast his being removed mid term before he even won the GE. The "left" knew they'd not win a GE with a "leftie" leader, so put in a stooge instead. Now it's their time to appoint lefties to major cabinet posts to do what their union paymasters want them to do.

I don’t care if he’s governing from the moon, but… I’m resigned to the fact that bureaucracy will mushroom: “Director of Lanyards (Manchester) £85k, Director of Lanyard Equity (Manchester) £60k, Deputy Director of Lanyard Inclusion (Manchester) £55k and so on and so on…

Barely. It’s shit up here

Who knew peole actually live outside of London!

The north-south divide is alive and well, unfortunately. It hasn't really shifted since the 1970s.

Are indeed in the south west. Maybe if the new department was about tourism or rural housing/2nd homes then it would make sense to put it in one of those places. But its about devolution, so putting it somewhere that knows about devolution is a sensible move.

The best thing about this Andy Burnham situation is seeing Londoners panic about AN ACTUAL NORTHERNER as PM.

Oh, you are funny! Get a grip! 😂

So was Winchester..

Weren’t the supposed to be coming out of the houses if parliament any fir a good few years for major renovations

some of those billions coukd be used for so much else. Making schools and hospitals ready to handle heat springs to mind atm and then there’s housing and defence.