George Osborne vows to protect his Northern Powerhouse policy after fears Theresa May could scrap it
Former Chancellor — who is on the brink of setting up a new think-tank saus 'I care passionately about the north of England'
George Osborne last night vowed to protect his Northern Powerhouse policy vision after fears it could be scrapped by Theresa May.
The former Chancellor — who is on the brink of setting up a new think-tank — told The Sun: “I care passionately about the north of England and will be setting out my plans to support the Northern Powerhouse in the near future”.
Mr Osborne’s plans to boost the Northern economy were the central plank of his last years in the Treasury before he was sacked in July.
Unlike David Cameron, pals of Mr Osborne say he won’t quit the Commons but “stick around to see what happens next”.
Sources tell The Sun he has “been touring the North drumming up support from business leaders for his new project.”
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Last night Mr Osborne confirmed he would be launching a campaign to protect his policy and promised to set out the details soon.
The yet unnamed think-tank, first revealed yesterday by CityAM, comes amid fears the new government have other economic priorities.
New PM Theresa May was accused by Labour of “a summer of speculation and confusion” about whether she she backed Mr Osborne’s bold plans to rebalance the north and south of England.
Hints from Mrs May that she preferred a wider industrial strategy that takes in all parts of the country have stoked fears the flagship policy could be in danger.
In July she said: “If we are to take advantages of the opportunities presented by Brexit, we need to have our whole economy firing”.
It was claimed she wished to “shift the focus to other rural and industrial areas” rather than a narrow focus on the North of England and “do more to support cities outside London”.
But last night a No10 source said Mrs May was “absolutely committed” to the Northern Powerhouse policy.
Think-tanks have been often be used as a platform by politicians stepping back from the front-line.
After quitting as Tory leader in 2003, Iain Duncan Smith set up the Centre for Social Justice — yesterday the former Pensions Secretary announced he would be returning to the lead the group that fights for social reform.