Warrington South MP Sarah Hall made the comments in Parliament on Wednesday during a debate on the ‘Green Book’ – the Government’s guidance on options appraisal and evaluation of the costs, benefits, and trade-offs of alternative options for delivering policy objectives.
She says that investment in the south compared to the north is ‘deeply unfair’, and that delivering fair public spending in all regions is ‘urgently needed’.
“For too long, my constituents in Warrington South have been told to wait their turn – for infrastructure, for investment, and for opportunity,” she said.
“This Labour Government was elected to change the way this country works, and nowhere is that more urgently needed than in how we decide where and how public money is spent.
“The Green Book should enable fair and effective investment across the UK, but instead it has too often reinforced the very inequalities that we were elected to overcome.
“My constituency sits between powerhouse cities such as Liverpool and Manchester, yet it struggles to unlock the investment that we need to improve our transport links, further regenerate our town centre, or bring truly affordable housing to our communities.
“Why? Because despite previous reforms, the rules governing public investment are still rigged in favour of places that already have higher land values.
“That means that towns such as Warrington are too often seen as low-return risks, rather than high-potential communities.”
Mrs Hall said that she welcomes the Chancellor’s announcement of a full review of the Green Book.
“But let me say this clearly – this must not be a technocratic tweak,” she continued.
“It must be a fundamental reform, where people, place, and long-term potential are at the heart of investment decisions, unlocking the long-term, sustainable pipeline of investment needed in areas such as mine.
“But this is about more than Warrington South. Reforming the Green Book is about building a fairer, stronger, and more productive Britain.
“It is about enabling spending decisions that truly serve the whole country – lifting all our regions, reducing inequality, enabling better growth, wages, opportunity, and health, and delivering fair public spending.”
Tim Roca, Labour MP for Macclesfield, commented that research has shown that said that, if the north was a country, it would be second bottom in a league table of public investment, just above Greece, which is a ‘sign of how unfair public investment is in the UK’.
On this, Mrs Hall added: “I absolutely agree. Things are deeply unfair as they stand. Delivering fair public spending in all our regions is urgently needed.
“We cannot grow our economy using a toolkit that still assumes that the south east is the default.
“We need a Green Book that reflects the reality of 2025, not the London-centric logic of the past.
“This is our moment to rewrite the rules and deliver the growth, dignity, and opportunity that the people of Warrington South and the people of the north have been denied for too long.”
