Northumbria academics have led a roundtable
discussion at the House of Commons on the potential impact of Brexit and the future
of the Northern Powerhouse.
The event, entitled 'Beyond the
fragmented state: Mobilising the Northern Powerhouse for stronger public
governance and service delivery', addressed and discussed multiple aspects
associated with the development of the Northern Powerhouse and the uncertainty
created by the Brexit process. It was led by Professors Joyce Liddle, John
Shutt and Ignazio Cabras from Newcastle Business School, and chaired by the RT
Hon Kevan Jones, MP for Durham North.
Significant focus was also devoted
to the role played by Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPs) in achieving
economic and development targets set at both national and local levels. During
the session the three Professors gave an overview of the new, complex governance
arrangements across England, answering questions from a number of MPs from
Northern constituencies, alongside questions from policy and economic advisers
based at Westminster.
Professor Liddle said: 'The
devolutionary process linked with the Northern Powerhouse has created greater
uncertainty, fragmentation, lack of co-ordination between the various agencies,
and blurred the lines of accountability for decision-making. Based on our research
we would argue that there has been insufficient thinking on how state and
non-state organisations will work together to improve the North’s future.
Beyond the difficulties of the next two years we need to develop a new 2030
agenda to deal with UK local government changes.”
The academics believe that in this
context, the uncertainty created by the Brexit process adds further complexity
for regions, local authorities and other state, non-state, business and civic
agencies.
“The North East of England and its
economy are significantly exposed to any outcome derived from Brexit,” said
Professor Cabras. “For instance, in case
of a ‘no deal’ exit from EU, our region presents the highest risks in terms of
declining GDP and increasing unemployment among all the English regions. Given the
current scenario, any decision on future industrial strategy and investments
for the region needs to be pondered even more carefully than ever before,” he
added,
Professor Shutt advised that 'many
questions remain on Northern governance and how public services will be delivered
in future. “We need to explore and find optimal solutions in order to reduce
fragmentation across governing bodies, improving public service delivery and
enhancing multi-agency governance in the UK,” he said.
The HoC Roundtable is the first of
a series of initiatives, led by Northumbria researchers, aimed at
stimulating a multi-level discussion on potential and future strategies
for the North of England, and at addressing and debating the key priorities for
governance and public service delivery in view of finding suitable solutions.
A limited number of places at Northumbria
University will be available to high-achieving students through Clearing
this year. For more information, visit www.northumbria.ac.uk/clearing or call
the Clearing Hotline on 0800 085 1085.
