OUR “red wall” seats fell to Boris Johnson partly because he promised to get things done in a way no one could imagine Jeremy Corbyn doing.
It was more than just getting Brexit done: it was getting things built, as well. The “red wall” seats hadn’t fallen to David Cameron or Theresa May because voters did not like austerity, but Mr Johnson won them over with his levelling up agenda which was billed as the opposite to austerity.
It promised funds to overcome the inequities felt in the “left behind places”. One of the statistics which showed the unfairness was transport spending which, according to the ippr thinktank, has seen London enjoy £864 per head spending in the last decade and the north just £349. That’s a gap Mr Johnson promised to plug with his high speed railways – a promise we now know he is not going to deliver.
Yesterday, another Government department – the Competition and Markets Authority – announced it was going to be join the Treasury and all the other departments in relocating to Darlington. This is great. This is levelling up in action. This could change the mindset of government as will bring economic benefits.
One of the reasons Darlington is a popular venue is because of its transport links. They are coming because Bank Top has a regular main line service – at least for as long as capacity on the line allows. This shows transport infrastructure works as a regeneration tool, and it explains why there is so much anger in the Yorkshire places where Mr Johnson is not delivering.
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