ANDY Burnham has said he will spend time at his new “No10 North” department if he becomes prime minister, and has suggested where it will be based in the city.
Burnham announced plans for a “rewired Britain”, earlier this week, claiming power would shift from Westminster to the regions of England and further into Scotland and Wales.
If he becomes prime minister later this month, as expected, he would establish a No 10 North in Manchester to act as the “nerve centre” for the plan.
Now, the MP for Makerfield has said the building will be close to Manchester Piccadilly station.
Manchester Digital Campus is currently being built in Ancoats and was already earmarked as a campus for around 8800 civil servants from multiple departments working "with a focus on digital delivery". The site is not due for completion until 2032, according to The Times.
He told LBC in his first broadcast interview: “This is about obviously extending the Downing Street operation, creating a North Pole, if you like, so that the country can see that the power is more balanced. Number 10 North will act in the interests of everywhere though.”
Asked for a more specific location, he said: “There is already a proposal for a government digital campus close to Manchester Piccadilly, so it is my intention, if I get the opportunity, is to base it there.
“I will spend time there, because I think it’s really important to show a new drive around taking power out of Westminster. Why? To get growth in every postcode around around the country.”
Facing media questions for the first time since becoming the MP for Makerfield, he was later asked about his potential cabinet, to which he replied: “I want there to be the most inclusive approach to building the team, so that all parts of the party can see themselves represented within it.”
Asked if he has chosen his chancellor yet, he said: “No, I haven’t made those decisions, and deliberately not.”
Speaking about the speculation around his likely cabinet, he said: “Westminster goes into its normal mode and it wants to endlessly speculate about personalities before policy and before direction.
“I very deliberately have said ‘no, I’m going to set out a new direction for the country'.
“I think it’s really important that, firstly, people understand what is being proposed here, and then consider what their contribution to delivering that new direction would be.”
Burnham is to answer questions from the public on Friday night on the online forum Reddit and social media site Instagram. He will be able to choose which questions to answer with no follow-ups.
