Burnham to unveil plan to shift power from London to England

Andy Burnham will use his first major speech since launching his bid for No 10 to argue for a 10-year mission to raise living standards and move power away from London. The Manchester mayor will pair that pitch with a promise of “good growth in every postcode”, putting English devolution at the centre of his case.

Burnham will argue for stronger regional control over decisions now concentrated in Whitehall, including a possible devolution of income tax across Britain, a “No 10 in the North” operation in Manchester and greater state involvement in energy and water. He will also back a new programme of council house building and infrastructure spending outside the South-East, alongside his call for reindustrialisation, better housing and reform of essential utilities.

The government’s English Devolution White Paper, published on 16 December 2024, set out a plan to widen and deepen devolution across England and to hardwire mayors into government. The English Devolution and Community Empowerment Act 2026 is now in force, and the framework documents updated in June 2026 give established mayoral strategic authorities statutory functions in transport, education, planning and related areas, including housing, strategic planning, skills and employment support.

Office for National Statistics figures for 2023 put London’s output per hour worked 28.5% above the UK average. The same data show the North West made the largest positive contribution to productivity growth from 2019 to 2023.

Burnham returned to Parliament in the Makerfield by-election in June 2026, giving him a Commons platform as the succession debate intensifies. Kemi Badenoch has called on him to go to Parliament and set out his priorities, while critics argue his pitch amounts to a transfer of power among politicians rather than an answer to pressure on household living standards.