If Andy Burnham gets his New Year wish granted, 2025 will be the year of devolution – and the MBacc in particular.
The Mayor of Greater Manchester is the most powerful mayor outside of London but has consistently stressed the North speaks with one voice.
It was telling that one of the first acts of the new Labour Government was to invite Burnham – and the other regional mayors – to 10 Downing Street for talks.
The metro mayors are dominated by Labour although the Conservative Tees Valley Mayor – Ben Houchen – was also in attendance.
“To be called into Downing Street on day three of this new government was a very, very powerful signal that’s coming, hopefully in this parliament,” said Burnham.
“It was such a message to the Whitehall system that the mayors are here and they’re going to be key to the growth that the country needs. It was very empowering for all of us.”
Fast forward to December 16th 2024 and Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner set out the Government’s landmark English Devolution White Paper – billed as ‘unleashing power from Whitehall back into local communities’.
Liverpool City Region Mayor Steve Rotheram described it was ‘a watershed moment’ for devolution in England. “Mayors are the delivery arm of government and, working together, we’re setting the standard for what devolution can achieve,” he added.
Following publication of the white paper, Burnham shared a letter he’d sent to Rayner and her Cabinet colleague Chancellor Rachel Reeves.
“This is a proud moment for Greater Manchester,” he said. “The adoption across England of the model of devolution which we have pioneered will change the way our country is run, tilting it away from Whitehall and Westminster and empowering the English regions.
“Through devolution, we have achieved a level of growth higher than the UK average and we believe this extension will help the Government achieve its growth mission.
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“We are pleased the Government is giving Greater Manchester control over rail. It is clear that the railways aren’t working, and we are ready to pioneer a new approach by bringing eight commuter lines into the Bee Network.
“We will complete phase one in early January, with all our buses back under public control, and are ready to start on phase two straight away which will see bikes, buses, trams and trains united in a London-style system by early 2028 at the latest.
“One area where we would we like to see the Government go further is post-16 technical education. However, as the exchange of letters with the Government shows, we have the green light to prove the concept of the Greater Manchester Baccalaureate.
“We believe the MBacc will be a game-changer for technical education in our city-region, creating an equal alternative to the university route, and demonstrating that will be our defining mission in 2025.”
I interviewed Burnham before the English Devolution White Paper announcement and he emphasised that the mayors – and the North more generally – will continue to speak with one voice.
“I’m lucky because I’m in a position where people have built Manchester’s devolution over a long period of time before my time,” he told me.
“But we are very much working with everybody to say ‘whatever we’re trying to do we would want everybody to do the same’ because that’s when devolution really builds out the power of it.
“When you’ve got a trailblazer deal in Liverpool, West Yorkshire, South Yorkshire, that’s where we can do more big working with each other rather than having to go via Whitehall.
“When I negotiated the trailblazer deal with Michael Gove, and he deserves great credit for taking devolution to a new level, I did it on an open book basis.
“I said to the other mayors that we will not ask for anything without telling you what we’re asking for. We weren’t doing it in a closed, secretive way.
“The mayors are more collaborative than we are competitive. Look at how I collaborated with (former West Midlands Mayor) Andy Street. He and I got on really well, genuine respect and partnership.
“That’s how the mayors stand apart from the Westminster default mode of point scoring.”
Burnham has publicly backed PM Keir Starmer but insists he’ll keep speaking out – even if it puts him at odds with a Labour Government.
“No doubt there will come moments where we will have to say ‘we don’t agree’ and we will have to make our case,” he said. “It’s just where there is a failure to understand the perspective from the North.
“It’s often not a political thing, it’s more a Whitehall thing. You just call it out as clearly and forcibly as you can (and) I’ll always do that.”