UNION leaders have attacked the Prime Minister over his “levelling up” speech, accusing him of delivering “empty soundbites”.

Business groups were more receptive but admitted the UK has been more regionally unequal than economic competitors for too long.

TUC general secretary Frances O’Grady said: “We can’t level up the country without levelling up at work.

“This pandemic has brutally exposed the terrible working conditions, low pay and insecurity many of our key workers face.

“So far, there has been precious little to show for the Government’s vaunted levelling up agenda, and today’s speech will do little to change that.

“With more than one million children of key worker households in poverty and 3.6 million workers stuck in insecure jobs, it’s time the Government moved on from empty soundbites.

“Ministers must invest in good green jobs in industries of the future, ban zero hours contracts and give all of our key workers a pay rise.

“They must invest in warmer homes, faster broadband and better public transport links across the country. That’s how we level up the UK.”

Gary Smith, GMB general secretary, said: “Promises of ‘jam tomorrow’ don’t hold much hope when it’s Boris Johnson who is making them.

“Workers and their communities need to be able to see and feel a credible levelling up agenda by way of jobs and prosperity.”

On the announcement of new hospitals in England, Mr Smith said: “Even if the Government builds these hospitals, how will they find the staff to fill them?

“Ministers are doing nothing to tackle the understaffing crisis in our NHS and their shameful pay cut policy for NHS staff could well turn that crisis into a catastrophe before a new brick is even laid.

“Meanwhile, vague pledges of new green jobs should come with a health warning – communities across the country over the last decade have seen the promise of a green industrial revolution amount to little more than a puddle of political snake oil.”

Rachel Anderson, assistant director of policy, North East England Chamber of Commerce said: “We welcome the Prime Minister’s acknowledgement that our national economy being unbalanced is a problem that must be addressed. It was also very clear in his speech that he does understands where the difficulties in achieving this lie and the Government must bring forward a long term plan to do that.

"We have campaigned for many years that the overheating of the South East is not sustainable and that the North can be a key driver of the UK economy, it was positive that his speech recognised this.

"We've known about these problems for a long time and it's urgent that they're resolved. However, we need details of the actual measures to close the very real gaps in our economy to truly level up the country on key issues for our region which we didn't get today.

"Levelling up will take sustained, targeted investment and a change of mindset in finance, infrastructure, education, economic development and culture to really close the gap between regions and that needs leadership within regions but also a clear strategy from Government."

Tony Danker, director general of the CBI, said: “Levelling up is not only vital to prosperity and opportunity in all parts of the UK, it’s also a core requirement for our competitiveness in the global economy.

“The PM is right to recognise the importance of creating confidence among businesses to invest, and empowering local leaders to deliver.

“For too long, we have been so much more regionally unequal than our economic competitors. Our success in the decade ahead needs to draw on the unique talents and advantages of our regions and nations.”

Stephen Phipson, chief executive of Make UK, said: “If this pandemic has shown us anything it is that the manufacturing sector remains the economic engine and source of innovation, wealth and prosperity.

“Levelling up growth across UK regions is going to be central to not just a broad economic recovery but meeting the many social challenges that we face.

“This is a welcome commitment from the Prime Minister to such an important issue and industry will applaud the fact an issue which has been missed by successive governments is now central to policy.”

Tony Danker, CBI Director-General, said: “Levelling Up is not only vital to prosperity and opportunity in all parts of the UK, it’s also a core requirement for our competitiveness in the global economy. The PM is right to recognise the importance of creating confidence among businesses to invest, and empowering local leaders to deliver.

“For too long, we have been so much more regionally unequal than our economic competitors. Our success in the decade ahead needs to draw on the unique talents and advantages of our regions and nations.

“So levelling up must be a business imperative too. Only through dynamism in every community can we create the skills, jobs, and growth we need.

“At the CBI we intend building coalitions of business leaders in different clusters around the country for this task – working with our partners across government and centres of education and skills.

“Businesses are already playing their part - whether that’s renewable energy in the North East, advanced manufacturing in the Midlands, or semiconductors in Wales. Now we must seize the moment to grow prosperity for all.”

Henri Murison, director of the Northern Powerhouse Partnership, added: "Local leadership must be a core principle of levelling up and county deals are a promising sign the government intends to decentralise more powers further.

"However, places such as Cumbria as well as North Yorkshire and York have worked hard to get rid of overly-bureaucratic two tier councils and instead have worked to deliver a streamlined structure of councillors and a directly elected Metro Mayor. On the North Bank of Humber and in Cheshire and Warrington we need Metro Mayors deals to ensure greater accountability.

"The Prime Minister is right to recognise the huge potential that can be unlocked from a properly rebalanced economy and it’s now time to translate that into visible change.

"There’s just a week before the summer recess and we’re still yet to see the Integrated Rail Plan, which cannot wait till the autumn. Today over fifty northern business leaders have written to the Prime Minister to warn him that this delay is undermining business confidence."