Councillor Richard Farnell calls on government to look outside London or risk further divisions

Council Leader Richard Farnell

Councillor Richard Farnell, the leader of Rochdale Borough Council, is warning the government not to abandon the Northern Powerhouse project in the wake of the EU referendum election and to ensure areas outside major cities do not get left behind.

Councillor Farnell said: “Is it any wonder whole swathes of the country outside most of our main cities rejected the chance to remain part of the European Union?

“Given an opportunity to kick an establishment that has all but abandoned them, they took the chance to make their voices heard. Politicians must not ignore them - or as others appear to be keen to do - dismiss them as having been duped by anti-EU propaganda.

“What people in our great cities, particularly London, and the government must finally realise is that the lifestyles they enjoy are out of reach of the majority. That is because in this country we have an unequal funding system that sees the majority of public investment go to a handful of places – but mainly London.

“A 2014 report showed that London gets 24 times as much spent on infrastructure per resident than some areas of the north. Last year another report showed that the 10 areas receiving most funding for education were all London boroughs. Half of the ten with the lowest amount of funding were in the north.

“In the arts we know that despite years of protests from regional organisations the majority of funding for culture goes to London. Important national collections are being moved from northern areas to London by a government that is trying to convince us that the Northern Powerhouse project is more than just a snappy slogan.

“London also gets the majority of the UK’s transport budget while workers in our region must travel to work on grotty trains that were deemed unfit for the south decades ago.

“While the south complains about the cost of high-speed rail projects for the north, no one raises an eyebrow at another costly Crossrail project for London, or another extension to the tube network or another bridge across the Thames.

“There are many other examples of the north of England, including places like Rochdale, losing out at the expense of London. As the fallout from the EU referendum continues London must heed the lessons of 23 June and ensure that the areas that rejected its vision of the future are not left stuck in the past.

“The north needs the investment that has helped London and other cities grow. Without it, we are unlikely to ever create a financially-viable Britain outside the EU.”