Cities need ‘real devolution’ to avoid economic decline

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England's biggest urban areas face a return to urban decline unless government devolves economic powers to the core cities, a report published today reveals.

The Core Cities Group's final report on the future of England's biggest economies outside London projects that nearly 100,000 fewer people would be unemployed in a best case scenario contributing to £492m savings in welfare benefits per year.

But the report warns that this outcome only be achieved through real devolution to places that drive the countries economic growth.

It calls for a new partnership with government to achieve the best case scenario, which would see the core cities contribute 752,500 more jobs and £33.5bn more in GVA.

Devolution would put English cities on an even, competitive footing with major urban areas in Europe and elsewhere, it says.

The report is the result of several months of collaborative working with Will Hutton, executive vice chair of The Work Foundation.

Based on independent economic forecasts, it sets out two different economic scenarios – a best and a worst case – and goes on to explain how the best case outcomes can be achieved.

The report says that the core cities generate 27% of England’s wealth - more than London - and contain 28% of the nation’s high skilled workers. But it adds that they also experience significant deprivation with, on average, 67% of each region’s Job Seeker’s Allowance claimants based in their wider urban areas.

Representatives from the eight core cities are calling on the government to give them more powers to raise finance locally and bring them in line with the OECD average of 55%. In the UK this is currently just 17%, with local authorities in direct control of only about 5% of all taxation.

Chris Murray, director of Core Cities Group, said: 'The message from this report is clear: to avoid a decade of urban decline we need to enable our cities to invest in their future. With 27% of the economy at stake, this is not optional.'