Post-industrial Towns

Andy MacNae Excerpts

Wednesday 18th June 2025 Commons Chamber

[Jo White]

The Treasury’s use of that formula is the simple explanation for why we have left-behind towns across the whole of the UK. I value and welcome the fact that the Government have listened, and have resolved to overhaul the Green Book and use a place-based analysis as an integral element of the formula in future. I thank my hon. Friend the Member for Rossendale and Darwen (Andy MacNae) for his work with Ministers on this issue. That change is fundamental, because being left behind means failure. We had a Government who were only interested in the easy solutions, and were willing to see parts of the country become no-go areas for new industry and new opportunities.

[Andy MacNae (Rossendale and Darwen) (Lab)]

I thank my hon. Friend for the acknowledgement. The Green Book review has rightly identified issues of capacity and capability when it comes to business case development in certain areas, and of course the spending review allocated lots of money to areas with high capability, such as Manchester and Liverpool. That highlights the opportunities that devolution will eventually bring to places such as Lancashire, which have been left behind for too long, but does my hon. Friend agree that we cannot wait? We need to see proper investment in developing the capacity and capability that Lancashire needs to bring forward its own business cases now.

[Jo White]

I totally agree with my hon. Friend. This is absolutely urgent, which is why we stood to be MPs and why we are champing at the bit for change—it is why we are all in the Chamber tonight.