Boris Johnson has been urged to keep his promises to the north of England after analysis suggested Londoners are on track to receive almost three times more transport spending per person than northerners.
The government’s planned transport spending for London will be £2,389 more per head than that in the north unless investment in the “northern powerhouse” gets the go-ahead, according to the thinktank IPPR North.
The gap is seven times more per person in London than in Yorkshire and the Humber or the north-east of England, according to research published on Monday.
The mayor of Greater Manchester, Andy Burnham, said the report, based on the government’s list of planned infrastructure projects, made for “embarrassing reading”.
The analysis found the capital would receive £3,636 in transport spending per person, while the north would receive £1,247. Yorkshire and the Humber fare the worst of all of England’s regions with just £511 planned per person, followed closely by the north-east at £519 per person. The north-west will get £2,062 per person under current plans.
The thinktank said the study exposed the true extent of underfunding in northern transport in the past and in the government’s plans for the future, and the disparity had widened over the last decade. Had London increases been matched, the north would have received £66bn more than it has, it said.
The report calls for Johnson to urgently invest in the north and devolve powers to northern leaders and Transport for the North.
Luke Raikes, an IPPR senior researcher, said: “These figures show that the prime minister must urgently follow through on his promises to invest in northern transport infrastructure and devolve power to the north’s leaders. The northern powerhouse agenda could benefit people across the whole country. Northern transport infrastructure is a national priority.”
Referencing Johnson’s promises to “turbocharge” regional growth and invest in northern powerhouse rail, Burnham said government promises to the north had proved to be “about as reliable as our trains”.
He added: ““As important as they are, big schemes like HS2 and northern powerhouse rail won’t make a difference for people here any time soon. It is time to be clear about what a northern powerhouse actually means. It means Whitehall putting the north of England at the front of the queue for transport investment for the next 30 years – in the same way London has been for the last 30 years – and reprioritising transport spending in this country. Anything less will leave the government’s northern powerhouse claims as nothing more than a giant political con.”
Labour accused the government of holding the north back. The shadow transport secretary, Andy McDonald, said: “The north is held back by government underinvestment in transport and a lack of powers over public transport, including poor rail connectivity and cuts to bus services. Labour will build a Crossrail for the north and deliver powers and funding for bus services to close the north-south divide in transport.”
A government spokeswoman said: “We do not recognise these misleading figures – we’re spending more on transport per person in the north than anywhere else.
We are committed to reversing decades of under-investment in northern transport including providing a record £13bn by 2020 to improve transport networks in the north.
“As the prime minister recently set out, this government wants to drive growth across the north, including through northern powerhouse rail, giving local leaders greater powers and investing £3.6bn in towns across England.”
