Convention of the North 2023

On January 25th 2023, leaders from across the North convened in Manchester.

Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA) previewed the agenda ahead of the day, emphasising the united voice from across the North calling for meaningful political and fiscal devolution. You can read the article here

Place North West have written about some of the key messages coming from the convention, read their article here.

The focus of the conference was the growing level of inequality between the North and South of England, and how this can be tackled. Ahead of the day, policy officers from across the North put together a series of policy papers  (you can download these below) focused on the following areas:
 

Powering Britain’s Future Economy

Including all our people in growth   

Connecting the North 

Advanced Manufacturing and Digital 
Life Sciences 
Clean Energy and Net Zero     

People and Good Jobs 
Health 

Transport 
Trade and Investment 


The papers feature a brief on analysis of the current operating environment and proposals for future activity. They pick up on issues we know are important here in Greater Manchester – for example the ‘people and good jobs’ paper talks of the importance of improving jobs in the foundational economy, and the important role of a Good Employment Charter as a part of this and the positive impact it can have across the labour market and economy more generally. 

With Greater Manchester being one of the ‘trailblazer’ areas (alongside the West Midlands) for further devolution, and there being consensus from politicians across the spectrum that this is not only desirable but crucial to creating thriving and resilient local economies, a shift in the climate towards localism seems inevitable. How it looks and operates will emerge over time. Should the next government be a Labour one, the ‘Take Back Control Act’ will enshrine this commitment to devolution and local control in law, with tailored, local growth plans setting out the vision for areas.

In this context, the role VCSE organisations has to play is as place-shapers and advocates for the communities they work with. Once again, we urge organisations interested in engaging with this agenda to think about their value and impact in these terms. The context and evidence in these papers could help with that thinking.

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