Does Moving Power to the North Work?
· news
A Northward Shift: Can Power Be Moved Out of London?
The notion that a significant chunk of Britain’s power could be relocated out of London has long been met with skepticism. Critics have dismissed it as a naive attempt to decentralize decision-making, citing the difficulties in moving resources and talent away from the capital.
However, recent developments suggest that this idea might not be as fanciful as once thought. The BBC’s move to Salford 15 years ago was initially ridiculed by some as a quixotic endeavor, but today MediaCity is thriving with over 3,500 BBC staff and 250 other businesses calling it home.
The broadcaster’s relocation has brought new life to the north-west and set a precedent for other major organizations. Channel 4 has followed suit, relocating its headquarters to Leeds, while HMRC’s largest hub is now in Newcastle. The Office for National Statistics (ONS) moved its head office from London to Newport in south Wales back in 2007.
Successive governments have committed to this vision of shifting tens of thousands of civil servants out of the capital. Some officials, such as Chancellor Rachel Reeves, are genuinely trying to make it work. Reeves has hailed the Treasury’s hub in Darlington as “a No 11 of the North,” citing its success as a model for future moves.
However, experts point out that there are significant challenges to overcome. Only 21% of civil servants are based in London, but two-thirds hold senior roles, creating an uneven power dynamic that makes it harder to move decision-making away from the capital. Hannah Keenan, associate director at the Institute for Government, notes that this disparity would need to be addressed for any northward shift to be effective.
Leadership and a deep conviction are also crucial in making such moves work, according to Alice Webb, who oversaw the BBC’s Salford move as chief operating officer and later director of BBC North. Webb emphasizes the need for significant changes to shift the broadcaster’s center of gravity.
Andy Burnham’s ambition to create a “No 10 North” in Manchester has sparked excitement among those advocating for greater regional devolution, with part of his executive office potentially based there. The question now is whether this trend will continue, or if London’s gravitational pull will prove too strong to resist.
As the BBC and other major organizations have demonstrated that it is possible to thrive outside of London, one can’t help but wonder why the prime minister himself couldn’t also relocate some of his executive office northwards. If the north-west can host the BBC, why not the seat of government?
Reader Views
- EKEditor K. Wells · editor
While the BBC's move to Salford is touted as a success story for decentralization, let's not forget that this was a gradual process that spanned over 15 years. It's one thing to relocate individual departments or smaller organizations, but a wholesale shift of tens of thousands of civil servants out of London will be far more complex and costly. Until we see a clear plan for integrating relocated staff into regional leadership structures and addressing the talent pool disparities in the North, this remains a pipe dream rather than a practical policy aim.
- CMColumnist M. Reid · opinion columnist
While the relocation of major organizations from London has shown promise, we shouldn't get ahead of ourselves. Creating a truly decentralized power structure won't be as simple as moving a few thousand civil servants to the north. The issue isn't just about where they're based, but also who's making the decisions and how policy is implemented on the ground. We need to see more than just symbolic gestures – concrete changes in leadership culture, more diverse decision-making teams, and accountability mechanisms that ensure power isn't simply relocated from one elite group to another.
- ADAnalyst D. Park · policy analyst
While the BBC's success in Salford has undoubtedly set a precedent for other organizations, we shouldn't forget that media is inherently different from government services. The notion of relocating power to the north relies on a simplistic assumption that jobs and talent can be easily uprooted and replanted elsewhere. Yet, in reality, civil servants are not like freelancers or creatives; they require more infrastructure and bureaucratic support systems that don't simply follow them to their new location.