You’d be forgiven for forgetting that it’s approaching a year since Boris Johnson won his 2019 election victory. Assuming this parliamentary term lasts five years, which is no sure thing, then only four remain, of which COVID will occupy at least another six months of the government’s time. Hamstrung by the pandemic, Boris is running out of time to level up and repay the trust of the Northern voters who elected him. The cracks are already starting to show. He promised to roll out gigabit broadband to 100% of the country, now that target has been quietly rolled back to just 85% of the country by 2025. Having promised consign austerity to the dustbin of economic history, he is now imposing a pay freeze on 1.3 million public sector workers. We don’t know yet whether the Brexit deal to come will vindicate fishing communities’ decision to back Boris, or whether they will be left at sea. Boris needs to level up his levelling up agenda, and he needs to do it now, else he’ll reap the political consequences come the next election.
In this video we take an extended look at the levelling up agenda, its shortfalls, and examine how they could best be remedied.
