More than a year on from the appointment of Stockton South MP James Wharton as ‘Northern Powerhouse’ minister and two years after Chancellor George Osborne first introduced the project, is it still powering forward? Stuart Arnold reports.

LOOSELY aimed at rebalancing the economy so the North could rival the likes of London, the Northern Powerhouse concept was broadly welcomed by business leaders.

But there was a realisation that while it was a step in the right direction, much work needed to be done.

While no quantifiable target has been set, last year the think tank IPPR North – which describes itself as politically neutral – set out four tests of its own in its State of the North report and said only when these are met could the Northern Powerhouse be described as a success.

These were

:: A ‘better type’ of economic growth, combining rising productivity with more jobs and higher wages for all

:: Huge improvements to the development of people’s skills, starting with the very youngest

:: Enabling innovation and building an infrastructure needed for the 21st Century and beyond

:: Rejuvenating local democracy by giving people a genuine involvement in the way the North of England is run.

It said standard economic measures such as levels of economic growth and productivity played an important role, but did not necessarily paint the full picture.

Arguably only the last test is anywhere near to being met with five devolution deals having been agreed by local councils in the North which will see voters elect elected mayors and powers transferred from Whitehall.

Earlier this week the Chancellor gave his own bullish assessment of the Northern Powerhouse.

In a speech in Liverpool he talked about record levels of employment across the North and said the region was leading the whole of the UK when it came to foreign investment, pointing out there had been 90 European investment projects in the North-East in the past five years.

Treasury analysis claims that by 2020 there will be at least 20,000 new jobs created in the North-East at current growth rates – but only on the proviso that Britain remains in the EU.

Not all the indicators are positive, however. According to the York-based Joseph Rowntree Foundation ten of the UK’s top 12 poorest cities are based in the North.

The North also still has lower wages, lower productivity and a higher dependency on welfare than many other parts of the country.

Meanwhile, Ed Cox, the director of IPPR North, said the Government risks a “piecemeal” approach by not encouraging more involvement from business in the Northern Powerhouse and having a “proper plan”.

Together with the Royal Town Planning Institute and in consultation with more than 300 businesses, the organisation has now drawn up its own blueprint called the ‘Great North Plan’ in order to encourage new investment in the North.

The blueprint maps key North assets and sets out transport and connectivity issues.

Mr Cox said: “The Government has the right destination in mind with the Northern Powerhouse, but letting it be driven by Whitehall rather than Northern businesses risks taking us in the wrong direction with a piecemeal, partial and parochial approach.

"The Powerhouse has got to go beyond things like reducing travel times between Leeds and Manchester, important as this is. Businesses and foreign investors have told us that they want to see a more coherent approach to economic planning with the kind of framework found in London, Scotland and most European regions.

"We have some real competitive advantages in the North – in areas like advanced manufacturing, the digital economy and energy supply, not to mention quality-of-life. But we need a business-led plan from the North, for the North, to tie these together.

"It is the kind of strategy that they have in London and in the most successful regions in Europe and the USA and now is the time for business leaders to have a bigger role in making the Northern Powerhouse a reality.”

Chris Hearld, chair of KPMG’s Northern region, agrees. He said: “There are compelling business reasons why the Northern Powerhouse is a must-win game, but the corporate community must be in the driving seat when it comes to the delivery of a vision this critical to business and it’s certainly too fundamental a transformation sought, to lack a plan.”

A spokesman for the Department for Communities and Local Government said: “The Northern Powerhouse is at the heart of our plan for Britain and is already rebalancing the economy.

“Foreign direct investment has increased by 127 per cent in the two years since it was established, and more people are in work than ever before.”

The Echo contacted Mr Wharton’s constituency office, but was told he did not wish to comment.