The North of England receives one of the lowest levels of investment among advanced economies, lagging behind nations like Slovakia, Poland and Hungary, a damning report has revealed.
If the region were a country, Greece would be the only member of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) group of nations to see less public and private investment than Northern England, according to the State of the North report by the IPPR North think-tank.
The research released as Northern political, civic and business leaders prepare to meet for a major conference in Manchester found that the UK as a whole ranks 35th among the 38 OECD countries in terms of receiving the least investment.
States including Slovakia, Poland and Hungary all enjoy more investment than the UK. Were the OECD average applied to the UK for 2017-2020, some £397 billion more would have been invested.
The UK and the North are being held back by “vast inequalities” and “systematic underinvestment” in research and development, social infrastructure and transport, IPPR North said.
