Jim Hancock

SCOTLAND: THE GAME’S AFOOT!

Alex Salmond will be hoping that the Commonwealth Games now under way in Glasgow will help his flagging campaign for Scottish independence.

But just before the sporting contest got started I had a chance to catch up with him on his last foray into England before referendum day. Salmond seems to like Liverpool. Last year he got a great reception in St George’s Hall when he shamelessly played to Scouse antipathy to London by saying Scots and northerners all suffered from remote government from the capital.

He was at it again last week but the difference is the game’s afoot big time with the referendum now just eight weeks away. The Scottish Labour Party had brought down a red double decker bus with Vote No slogans all over it and parked it outside St George’s Hall. Batteries of TV cameras were in attendance along with BBC luminaries like Alan Little and Laura Kuenssberg.

He was speaking to a smaller audience of northern business people but the message was the same; Scotland and the North suffer economically from centralised government. He prayed in aid the former Liverpool Walton MP Eric Heffer who he claimed supported a young Alex Salmond in his efforts to get Scottish independence in the 1970s. Heffer’s successor Peter Kilfoyle seemed to be of the same mind. He told me he’d been on the Mersey Ferry earlier with Salmond who’d got a warm reception from the passengers. “If I was in Scotland, I’d vote for independence” declared Kilfoyle.

Salmond’s speech consisted of a battery of statistics designed to prove his case for independence but he also sought to address a growing anxiety that we in the North are going to lose out between a powerful Scotland and a dynamic South East of England. He had plans for high speed rail connections between the North and Scotland and wanted northern business people to cooperate in a cross border forum.

The Chancellor has made it clear that there could be no shared currency after independence. Salmond continues to insist that Mr Osborne is bluffing. It is the greatest weakness in his case and one that could be decisive for wavering Scots.

I have always believed that Salmond’s real project was to get the maximum amount of devolved power without full independence. I reminded him that he had wanted a third question on the ballot paper to accommodate this. He denied my suggestion that this showed a secret lack of confidence by the Scottish Nationalists that they could achieve the ultimate prize.

The three main UK parties have all promised further devolution of tax raising power if the Scots stay in the UK, so I suggested to Mr Salmond he would be a winner whichever way the vote goes. He replied that you can never trust the promises of English politicians.

The Commonwealth Games will fill the Scots with pride in what they can do for themselves. This will be followed by commemorations of the start of the First World War when Scots played a noble part in fighting alongside the other nations that made up the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. Then the Scots will vote.

WELL DONE WIRRAL!

Over 200,000 golf fans attended the Open at Hoylake with Phil Davies, the leader of Wirral Council and the Liverpool City Region, telling me £75m had been spent in the local economy.

Wirral Council staff were busy lobbying international guests about economic projects ranging from offshore wind to the massive Wirral Waters redevelopment. They are hoping for a major announcement shortly about a car components plant at the end of the M53 to service Halewood, Ellesmere Port and Crewe.

Along with the International Festival of Business promoted by Liverpool Council, our local authorities have done their best to promote the city region to the world this summer.

NATION DISCOVERS ESTHER!

There had been so much focus on the Prime Minister bringing more women into the government that it was inevitable the papers would focus in on Esther McVey.

OK perhaps she did milk the photographers’ attention, lingering a little too long on the No 10 doorstep, but the MP for Wirral West is very different in many ways from the average Tory Minister.

We are familiar with her life story. Daughter of a scrap merchant turned property developer, she has run her own business and had a career as a television presenter. With her Liverpool accent, she’s down to earth with the people she meets.

She’s still in her first term in parliament but has had four promotions from parliamentary private secretary to junior minister, Minister of State and now attending Cabinet when her ministerial responsibilities at the Department for Work and Pensions are discussed.

It’s a shame she wasn’t given a full Cabinet place, perhaps replacing Michael Gove at Education, but Esther McVey is now clearly the second most senior Tory in the North West behind the Chancellor and Tatton MP George Osborne.

But who else is in the government from the North?

Ben Wallace (Wyre and Preston North) has taken a whips job, Crewe’s Edward Timpson remains at Education and ex Trafford Council leader Susan Williams holds a government post in the Lords.

However the drive to appoint women and Tory MPs with an ethnic background has left a raft of male and pale MPs disappointed. I’ve selected six North West Conservatives who could easily have been on the ministerial ladder now. Leading the way are Andrew Stephenson (Pendle) and Jake Berry (Rossendale) along with David Rutley (Macclesfield) David Morris (Morecambe) David Mowat (Warrington South) and Graham Evans (Weaver Vale).

The North needs more voices in the corridors of power, especially after the departure of William Hague. I was genuinely shocked that he wanted to give up one of the best jobs in government leave alone quitting politics altogether next year.

The consequence of that is that we have a new Foreign Secretary who has openly contemplated leaving the European Union. The appointment of Philip Hammond and other changes to the government show that David Cameron is determined to try and win next year’s General Election on a highly Eurosceptic platform.

The Attorney General Dominic Grieve was sacked because he warned against plans for the UK government to limit the power of the European Court of Human Rights.

The almost anonymous Lord Hill has been put forward as the UK’s nominee for EU Commissioner. That’s hardly designed to guarantee us a key economic portfolio. If he is put in charge of paper clips then we can have another Juncker style row which will make renegotiating the treaty even harder.

Then there will be the absence of Ken Clarke from the Cabinet table. He would have made a good Prime Minister but paid the price for his pro European views. Now his wise advise for us not to become obsessed with Europe will be absent from the Cabinet table.

Of course the car crash with Europe won’t happen if Labour win the election, but the anti European populist theme that runs through this reshuffle is likely to ensure that doesn’t happen.

IT’S GRAND UP NORTH !

ILKLEY MOOR BAR HELMET

What a week for the North of England! Pride of place must go to the people of Yorkshire for the magnificent response to the Tour de France. From Leeds to the wonderfully named Buttertubs and all locations in between they came out in their thousands. The effort that was put in to make sure that every mile was decorated with bunting and yellow painted bikes was truly impressive.

Let’s hope that the Dales tourist industry gets the legacy benefit it deserves. God’s Own Country was on show to the world and Yorkshire seized its opportunity. Manchester’s Commonwealth Games put that city on the map, Yorkshire deserves no less.

MONEY MONEY MONEY

Then there were the announcements of infrastructure support from the Regional Growth Fund for projects across the North. You can tell the economy is improving and an election is coming.

However the public sector strikes this week lends some support to Labour’s claim that not everyone is sharing in the recovery. Since 2010 public sector pay has gone up 6.7% whilst prices have risen by 16%. The UK deficit is £107bn and the National Debt £1.3 trillion.

But can Labour win the election by pointing this out or will they be seen either as moaning minnies at the party or be held responsible for past economic errors? The party’s efforts to win public support are not being helped by continuing internal criticism of Ed Miliband’s leadership.

NORTHERN REVOLUTION

So with the cycling and the extra cash why do we need a Northern Revolution? That question was explored at a Downtown conference where the Chief Executive of Manchester City Council gave a very frank interview to a frank interviewer called Frank.

In a straight talking session with Downtown’s CEO Frank McKenna, Sir Howard Bernstein called for the abolition of the Highways Agency, praised Liverpool’s port but not its airport, forecast that the issue of congestion charging would return in Manchester, claimed John Prescott never “got” his plan for the city and was happy to have a debate on an elected mayor for the Greater Manchester sub region.

The interview came in the wake of similar pledges from the Conservative and labour parties on devolution of money and powers to northern cities. Sir Howard felt the promises were for real this time. This was because Scotland would be getting more influence over its own affairs whatever happened in the independence vote and because national delivery models didn’t work.

On the concept of a linear urban powerhouse from Liverpool to Leeds, Sir Howard welcomed the expansion of Liverpool’s port facilities and the Omega development near Warrington. Manchester needed to concentrate on the Northern Hub which would also help with connectivity to Leeds, Sheffield and Newcastle.

He did not favour the recreation of a Northern Way organisation but admitted it had helped turn the regeneration of Piccadilly Station from a local project into one starting to properly connect the North through the Hub. However the spending on transport in London was still ten times that of the north and Sir Howard forecast that the £20bn Crossrail 2 would soon be approved.

On airports, Sir Howard was in no doubt that Manchester was unambiguously the North’s main air hub. He claimed that the surge in low cost flights at Liverpool Airport was “artificial” caused by Manchester taking its eye off the ball. The market would decide the role of Liverpool, Blackpool, Leeds and Doncaster. In the latter case, any bid for improved rail links would need to be evidence based. He said the plans for Airport City had been ahead of their time but would now provide an ideal location for global companies.

Voters rejection of plans for congestion charging in Manchester in 2008 had been a rare setback for Sir Howard and council leader Sir Richard Leese but the Chief Executive said the issue would have to be revisited. The city also needed another inner ring road.

He was highly critical of the way the Highways Agency failed to connect with local government and felt its powers should be given to organisations like Transport for Greater Manchester.

Up to now there has been scepticism about elected mayors from officers and politicians in Manchester, but when asked about the Chancellor’s backing for an elected mayor covering the Greater Manchester Combined Authority area, Sir Howard said it was not an unreasonable question. He forecast that with increased powers the model on relying on ten part time political leaders might not have a future. He felt the politicians would know when it was time for change but it must not be imposed from above. It also should not be based on the London model where the boroughs were not integrated with Boris Johnson.

It is no secret that Manchester resented John Prescott’s regional policy,.Sir Howard believed that the former Deputy Prime Minister never appreciated the city’s model for regeneration and resented the fact that local Labour politicians had worked with Tories like Michael Heseltine and Michael Portillo on schemes like Metrolink.

CIVIL SERVANTS-THE BARRIER TO POWER FOR THE NORTH.

STAND ASIDE WHITEHALL.

The Conservative and Labour parties are now broadly in agreement about what needs to be done about the North-South divide.

I still think the Coalition was wrong to destroy the Regional Development Agencies and Labour needs to add a Council of the North to its plans to beef up the Local Enterprise Partnerships and Combined Authorities.

However even with our two main political parties broadly agreed on how to devolve resources and power to the North, there is a major obstacle in their path. It is secretive and bitterly opposed to any policy that would take power and influence away from Whitehall. It is the Civil Service. They used to wear bowler hats, now they are less identifiable. Their appearance might change but they’re basic attitude to the North will never change.

They know little about our area. They regard the North as a place populated with people with begging bowls, trying to get money which they haven’t the expertise to spend. They sometimes acknowledge people like Manchester Council leader Sir Richard Leese, but generally believe northern politicians are Town Hall minnows who can’t be trusted with the cash. At a recent conference I heard one former senior Treasury official bragging that as far as civil servants are concerned there never has been a regional policy.

This situation has prevailed for many decades even when there were civil servants in regional government offices. Some tried to make a difference, most couldn’t wait for a posting back to London.

Tony Blair invaded Iraq but he never had the guts to demand his civil servants implement John Prescott’s vision for well resourced development agencies democratically controlled by assemblies. We elect the politicians and they should tell the civil servants, with the threat of dismissal, to get on with what the elected government propose.

So let’s see what happens after the election. Both parties want to devolve money and power to the North. I forecast the civil service will first of all go slow, then the Treasury will reduce the money available, then the powers will be trimmed.

I hope I am wrong but it is going to need Cities Minister Greg Clarke or Labour’s Lord Adonis to have the full support of Cameron or Miliband to get this done.

JUNKER: THE DEMOCRATIC CHOICE.

We are set to celebrate Magna Carta. It was the start of democracy but when the democratic choice of the European Parliament gets the top job, people cry foul.

David Cameron says the Council of Ministers is more democratic than the European Parliament. How does that work? We directly elected our MEPs who’s political groups had decided who should be their candidates for President of the European Commission. Junker was the centre right choice. They got most seats. Bingo.

David Cameron was first elected as an MP, then became Prime Minister in which capacity he attends the Council of Ministers. I don’t see how he’s able to claim greater democratic authenticity than the European Parliament.

Anyway Cameron now faces a very difficult task in getting sufficient concessions to convince a Tory Party, and probably the British people, that we should stay in.

TOUR DE LEEDS.

Very best wishes to Leeds and Yorkshire this weekend as the Tour de France begins in the fair county.

It is a huge opportunity for the region and a tribute to the people from business, sport and politics who have made it possible.