gillybob governments of all persuasions have been trying to do that for long as I can remember. I can remember Lord Hailsham coming up to the north east in the early 1960s, in a campaign that included cash incentives and enormous subsidies for new factories. The companies came, attracted by being provided with premises with out cost, but as soon as times got difficult they started by closing these factories, which had cost them nothing and were too far from their core operating area.
In the 60s and 70s there were restrictions on companies opening new facilities in the London area, but all they did was move a little further out, to Reading, Newbury, Chelmsford, Colchester,
At one point I thought the answer was to let companies develop in the south east, because eventually housing demand would exceed supply, house prices would rocket, people wouldn't want to move to London and companies would have to move out to get enough staff. Well, housing demand is well ahead of supply, prices have rocketed but people still pour in.
Governments have moved many government agencies out of London, notably DVLA to Swansea. the BBC to Salford has. More recently attempts have been made to move people north through cultural attractions; Liverpool had its garden festival, Hull was last year's City of Culture but all with little effect.
Now companies are more international, if one country's government limit where they can go, there will always be another country ready to be more amenable.
As I said Gilly governments have been trying to do this for decades with out success, If you know a sure fire way of doing it let us know. As a southerner, I would love to see the pressure on the south reduced, not just dropping house prices but fewer houses being built, fewer industrial estates, overcrowded roads, overwhelmed medical facilities and over crowded schools
