British Prime Minister, Andy Burnham, in his first address to the House of Commons since taking office, has offered devolution deals to regions across the United Kingdom, saying he wants to prevent a “two-tier England” where some areas benefit from greater local powers while others do not.
Speaking to MPs on Tuesday afternoon, Burnham drew on his decade of experience as mayor of Greater Manchester, where he said he helped transform one of the UK’s former industrial heartlands into the country’s fastest-growing city region.
He said he wanted other parts of the country to have the same opportunity to use devolved powers to drive growth and development.
“I want every single place across our regions and nations to be able to do the same” as Manchester, Burnham said.
The Prime Minister said he had asked No 10 North, an office he established shortly after entering government, to begin discussions with Cornwall Council and the region’s six cross-party MPs on a possible devolution agreement.
He said the deal could be implemented either with or without an elected mayor.
Burnham’s announcement comes after MPs in some regions raised concerns that the government’s focus on northern England, described by critics as “Mancheristism”, could result in other parts of the country being overlooked.
He said the same offer would be extended to all areas of England that currently do not have devolved powers.
Burnham also pledged to explore further forms of local devolution in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, with the issue expected to be discussed at a special meeting of the National Economic Council next month.
“Britain needs a circuit breaker after a decade of turbulence, negativity, point scoring, and divisive politics,” Burnham said.
“This is what I have outlined today: a clear, coherent, and credible approach to growth that can unlock a feeling of positivity and possibility in every postcode in Britain.
“Our job in here is to make it real by taking a place-first rather than party-first approach. It starts with reasserting basic standards for Britain: that this is a country where no one sleeps rough and no community is blighted by an illegal waste tip.
“And from there, working together to build a new sense of optimism around the country, we can make this next decade better than the last. We can lift the prospects of all our people and places. We can put more power into every postcode. We can let Britain believe again. We can bring back hope.”
The Prime Minister also highlighted reforms to education and training as important to helping more young people move into employment.
He said making community-based mental health services more accessible would be a major part of the government’s response to the forthcoming Alan Milburn report on rising unemployment.
On prison policy, Burnham confirmed that prisoners convicted of manslaughter, death by dangerous driving or indecent assault would not have their prison terms altered under the government’s plans.
He said the government would create additional prison capacity by deporting more foreign national offenders and ending indefinite Imprisonment for Public Protection sentences.
“I believe the public will support me in recognising the clear difference between those who have served their time and more and those who have not,” he said.
“We will bring forward legislation soon, but we can find a solution to end this injustice, which balances public safety and basic fairness. And I urge colleagues on all sides of the House to help us do that. This is politics done differently, problem solving over point scoring.”
Burnham also told the Commons that the number of asylum seekers arriving in the UK by crossing the English Channel had fallen by half compared with last year.
He said crossings recorded so far this year were the lowest for the period since 2021.
The Prime Minister expressed sympathy for people affected by flooding in Nepal and Tibet, describing the disaster as an indication of “what the climate crisis looks like”.
He also confirmed that he would attend the COP31 climate summit in Turkey in November.
