Tees Valley: Ben Houchen and George Osborne

tees valley: In interviews to mark five years since George Osborne, then chancellor, unveiled his plan to rebalance the UK's economy, the north's political leaders said the project had halted with little sign of it being revived, according to The Guardian. Ben Houchen, the Conservative mayor for the Tees Valley, said his region had benefited massively from devolution but the northern powerhouse agenda had demonstrably dropped down the list of priorities under Theresa May's premiership. Research by the thinktank IPPR North also found there had been a 3.6bn cut in public spending in the north since 2010, compared to a 4bn rise in the south. The only reason the northern powerhouse worked is that you had George Osborne at Treasury driving it, he said. The northern powerhouse agenda has delivered some important successes, notably the introduction of metro mayors covering half of the north of England, and the creation of Transport for the North, which has a 70bn investment plan for the region's beleaguered railways. To deliver the northern powerhouse you've got to have those levers at Treasury that you can pull to make it work The new leader of the Conservative party is going to have to address that issue and make sure that it's put back on the map. (news.financializer.com). As reported in the news.