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Productivity is up, the number of young professionals wanting move to the northern city has reached an all-time high, and Manchester mayor’s personal ratings are soaring. As Starmer struggles at home, could the King of the North work his magic in Westminster once more? Sonia Sodha weighs up his chances…
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abour marked its first anniversary in government with its most difficult week yet: a spectacular U-turn on welfare cuts and a chancellor struggling to hold back tears in the Commons, all capped off with Keir Starmer’s approval ratings sinking to an all-time low. However well Starmer does on foreign policy, on the home front, he continues to flounder. Little wonder then that, even amidst all the pomp and deal-making coming from a state visit from the French president, the party’s MPs are in a low mood.
Compare this to the decidedly upbeat atmosphere to be found 160 miles away in Manchester, which is experiencing the kind of economic boom that has proved elusive to Westminster and Whitehall. Greater Manchester has enjoyed the highest productivity growth of any British region in the last two decades – far outperforming London – and under the leadership of its mayor Andy Burnham’s leadership, Manchester has taken back control of the local bus network, improving reliability and passenger numbers.
