Levelling up has all but disappeared from the government’s agenda. That’s a big mistake for growth, writes Paul Ormerod

Later this month Chancellor Rachel Reeves will deliver her Spring Statement. It seems to be waited on more in fear than hope. But one area of policy appears to have more or less disappeared from the agenda: “levelling up”.

The phrase was a prominent slogan in the Conservative party’s election campaign in 2019. Many felt that it had more bark than bite. In practice little was done by the Tories to reduce the regional inequalities which pervade the UK.

Under Labour, the phrase itself has been cast into darkness.

To be fair, the current government is actively devolving powers to regional mayors and local authorities. But there is not very much in the way of additional resources. The changes essentially give local politicians more freedom to decide how a given amount of........

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