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In recounting his experience as chief secretary to the Treasury in 2007, he shares how he was informed that “No project in the north passed the Green Book, Minister.” This same message was reiterated in 2020 amid discussions about reforming the funding formula. At that time, Chancellor Rachel Reeves advanced pilot initiatives aimed at altering the current approach to potentially boost local investment opportunities.
Within his book, Burnham makes a case for scrapping the Barnett formula, the mechanism that allocates public spending and provides additional funding to Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland to ensure they are not disadvantaged compared to England overall. Burnham contends that this formula results in northern England being caught in a difficult position, squeezed between competing fiscal demands.
Burnham highlights Germany’s Basic Law as a model, noting its obligation to ensure “equivalent living standards” across different regions. He suggests that adopting a similar legal framework would offer protections to local governments and guarantee that regions are consulted on long-term policy decisions. Furthermore, Burnham calls for extensive constitutional reforms, proposing proportional representation and replacing the House of Lords with a “Senate of the Nations and the Regions,” alongside the devolution of expansive powers over public services to regional authorities.
Regarding Net Zero targets, Burnham promotes the idea of a “Northern Way,” which would provide subsidies to support the transition to cleaner energy, retrofit homes to cut bills, and develop local industries that can export products. He contrasts this strategy with what he terms the “Whitehall way,” characterized by imposing bans, charges, and taxes that disproportionately impact the poorest communities. However, the implementation of such policies faces challenges including rising global energy prices, household budget pressures, and expectations from North Sea energy sectors eager to increase oil and gas production. Additionally, questions remain over how full tax and spend devolution would operate across regions, such as whether the south-east would retain the taxes it generates. Recent discussions have also seen aides downplay any imminent changes to the Barnett formula, amid concerns voiced by Scottish politicians
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