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Follow the money · Money north ·

Burnham's money north: what has actually moved?

Andy Burnham became Prime Minister on 20 July promising to move money and power north. Twelve weeks on, we followed the money. One thing is delivered. Most of the rest is announced, not paid. And much of the money already heading north was set by Keir Starmer, not Burnham.

How we label things: VERIFIED means a primary source or an on-record statement, linked. REPORTED means a named outlet, sometimes relying on unnamed sources. OUR READING is what we think the facts add up to. UNKNOWN means we looked and couldn't find it. Every source is free to read.

The scorecard, in one line each

Every Burnham-government pledge to move money or power north since 20 July 2026. Only three statuses: delivered, in progress, or announced only.

Pledge Status
No.10 North, a Manchester branch of Downing Street Delivered (the unit exists; its budget is unknown)
Council housing: £1.4bn+ steered to three northern areas In progress (allocated, re-aimed existing money)
Devolution deals for every area without one In progress (talks only)
Mayors keep business rates (2027) and income tax (2028) Announced only
£1bn for innovation clusters Announced only (UK-wide, not just the North)
Good Growth Funds for every area Announced only: "more at the budget"
Energy, water and landlord powers for mayors and councils Announced only

OUR READING On the money, the honest score so far is one new office, money moved around inside an existing pot, and a lot of dates. The Budget on 28 October is where announcements either get a number or don't.

Read the fine print on how he got the job: Did Burnham name a price? That one's free.

Sources

Sources are always free. Every document this piece relies on:

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