The United Kingdom is set to relocate the Treasury’s responsibility for economic growth to a newly created No10 North office in Manchester. The change, outlined by Communities Secretary Angela Rayner, will leave the Treasury in Whitehall to focus solely on public‑finance oversight.
Rayner said the reform will see a substantial portion of the Treasury’s staff move north, with estimates suggesting that hundreds of the 2,000 posts currently based in London could be transferred to the Manchester hub. The announcement came a day after official data showed that the capital has the highest unemployment rate in the country.
In describing the rationale, Rayner told Times Radio that the move reflects a broader governmental recognition that “huge transfer of power” is needed to improve outcomes across regions. She argued that a more devolved structure would allow local areas to unlock their own economic potential.
The proposal mirrors approaches used in Canada, where provincial ministries drive regional growth, and in the United States, where state‑level agencies operate independently of the federal Treasury. Those models have been credited with diversifying economic activity beyond major metropolitan centres such as Toronto, Ottawa, and Washington.
At the same time, ministers are pressing ahead with a separate housing initiative that would grant automatic planning permission for new homes within 800 metres (or a ten‑minute walk) of busy tube, rail and tram stations. While the policy is intended to ease the housing shortage in London and elsewhere, it has provoked protests. Critics argue it contradicts Mr Burnham’s pledge to devolve powers to local councils and could encourage development on green‑belt land.
Prime Minister Andy Burnham, who is expected to work at the Manchester outpost once a week, described the new No10 North as the delivery mechanism for the devolution agenda. He said the Manchester branch of Downing Street, housed in Heron House, is already operational and will not cost taxpayers any additional money. Chancellor John Healey has expressed full support for the shift, which Burnham framed as part of the “biggest devolution of power in modern times”.
Opponents warn that concentrating the economic‑growth brief in No10 North could amount to a power grab, especially if the Treasury’s campus in Darlington is left out of the new structure. The debate continues as the government balances regional empowerment with concerns over local decision‑making and land use.