Only 1 in 5 clear what ‘levelling up’ means. Do you know? If so what do you think it means

I spent four years in Dundee in the mid-seventies. The old, highly successful port area was dying as were parts of the city. For a good number of years when I went back to Dundee to visit in-laws and a friend south of the Tay, I didn't see the city centre.

Then, after a gap of at least thirty years, I did go back to the port area to look at the museum. I was amazed at the transformation to it and to the main city shopping streets. Things had improved enormously and probably still are doing.

That I would call at least partial levelling up. Having seen it in one place that needed some uplift I imagine that, with the right political will, it can happen to other places that need a boost to their infrastructure and their jobs market.

Being an optimist by nature with a profound belief in human ingenuity and the fact that in general the human condition has only improved over long time frames (see ourworldindata.org and other similar websites), I think further similar transformations of run down places will happen in the UK unless we turn into a dictatorship of a certain east Asian or South American variety.

Callistemon

Isn't the most deprived area of the UK in the SE , in Essex?
Followed by eight places in Blackpool.

This is my point. Although there are undoubtedly pockets of deprivation in London and the SE, there are surely far more and larger devastated areas further north.

I also take the point that the cost of living is indeed greater in the capital and home counties. Job opportunities are greater, though.

Levelling up will no doubt be filed away along with Johnson's Social Care plan that we heard so much about when he wanted to be elected.

growstuff

MaizieD

giving areas more control over investment and creating new freeports.

Aaah. Freeports, they're great things where the law of the land doesn't apply... so no observation of workplace legislation, like Health & Safety or permitted hours, holidays or minimum pay levels for the people who work in them. Sounds really promising for the levelling agenda...

The UK has had freeports in the past and they still exist in mainland Europe. They have been shown to benefit only a handful of people. They do indeed provide jobs in a few areas, but leach work away from other areas, so the net result in the context of jobs is the same. It's just shuffling deckchairs on the Titanic around.

I did point out subsequently that Cameron put a stop to them because they weren't really successful.

I don't think our government is aware of the benefit of learning lessons from the past.

M0nica

I know very clearly what it means. It is a word used by politicians and their minions when they want to be seen saying something meaningful and hopeful, but not saying any.thing they can be tied to.

That's my understanding too, so I suppose I'd have to tick the box saying I know what it means - it's a meaningless catchphrase.

MaizieD

^giving areas more control over investment and creating new freeports.^

Aaah. Freeports, they're great things where the law of the land doesn't apply... so no observation of workplace legislation, like Health & Safety or permitted hours, holidays or minimum pay levels for the people who work in them. Sounds really promising for the levelling agenda...

The UK has had freeports in the past and they still exist in mainland Europe. They have been shown to benefit only a handful of people. They do indeed provide jobs in a few areas, but leach work away from other areas, so the net result in the context of jobs is the same. It's just shuffling deckchairs on the Titanic around.

varian

It means more pork barrell rewards for voting Tory

I had to look that up. I could only think of snouts in troughs.

Freeports= smugglers’ charter

It smacks of the 'clean new jobs' that were going to go to areas that the tories destroyed after the mines closed.

They turned out to be in call centres and burger bars, or as retail workers selling goods to the people who made money out of selling vastly reduced council houses to a new generation of landlords charging way over council rents to people who will never be able to buy a house of their own.

But hey, they all voted Tory, and as we now have no such thing as society to worry about, there's no looking back.

I think Freeports are an example of things to come Maizie.

We've had them before, Pippa. They weren't a sparkling success. Cameron ended up closing them down. But, because they're deregulated they have their attractions.

I think Freeports are an example of things to come Maizie.

The only way to really help is to stop the gap betweeen the lowest and highest incomes getting increasingly wider.

There are many areas which need investment too but much of the damage was actually done by this government and their party so why on earth do people believe they will go the other way now.

giving areas more control over investment and creating new freeports.

Aaah. Freeports, they're great things where the law of the land doesn't apply... so no observation of workplace legislation, like Health & Safety or permitted hours, holidays or minimum pay levels for the people who work in them. Sounds really promising for the levelling agenda...

I'd heard the phrase though not totally sure what he meant. Who is being levelled up and who to? Can you decline the offer if you're not happy with it. Are we to be given a say in what we would like levelled up?
I expect there are those in the Conservative party who think we should be levelled up to their standards I for one would say no to that.

When you scratch the surface of many beautiful areas of the Uk the reality is very different. I live in the South East, so we are insulated from some of the deprivation which hit areas of heavy industry, post Thatcherism, but; as many people commute into London, this affects house prices making most homes unaffordable for many. So, if you are working at the hospital, or in the university, or in the town, you are paying the commuter premium and are far worse off than your professional equivalent in other areas. I do get exasperated by the assumption that all is hunky dory in the home counties and that we are all out of touch with reality. My DD's salary as a NQT will not go far when the cheapest property in the village is an ex local authority two bed maisonette for £230K. So, how will Johnson level up here to make it possible for a young professional working couple to buy their first home, like most of us did?

The houses in Jaywick were never intended as permanent living accommodation. It isn't just Jaywick though, lots of seaside/coastal resorts have shocking levels of poverty

I know very clearly what it means. It is a word used by politicians and their minions when they want to be seen saying something meaningful and hopeful, but not saying any.thing they can be tied to.

It means nothing. It’s just yet another meaningless soundbite.

I think it means putting things up ie;putting up tax on food/alchohol etc.

Callistemon

Isn't the most deprived area of the UK in the SE , in Essex?
Followed by eight places in Blackpool.

Yes it’s Jaywick near Clacton-on-Sea

Isn't the most deprived area of the UK in the SE , in Essex?
Followed by eight places in Blackpool.

Blinko
the jolly old south east
Have you been to Newham recently. It’s not very jolly there despite being within spitting distance to the Shard.

www.newhamrecorder.co.uk/news/newham-government-deprivation-levels-by-postcode-3238230

I'm in the 18%. Johnson continually talks about levelling up but there's no way the govt are going to do it. It's a load of b******s

I would like to say it is hard to believe that the electorate will believe this, but then again.......

Doodledog

It's the sort of thing that see Labour politicians cross-questioned to the point of despair if they came up with a 'policy' like this.

agreed

I think you have got it, especially with the "no talk of funding".

Mr Sunak is, apparently, cut out of the cloth of all the previous Tories wanting "austerity" that will not actually touch them.

Sad, isn't it.