More than 90 Labour backbench MPs are urging Prime Minister Andy Burnham to lead UK reindustrialization from Manchester, with job targets and a National Wealth Fund overhaul, The Guardian reported.
The newspaper said a briefing paper seen by it calls for a Reindustrialisation Act that would set job-creation targets and make ministers answerable for progress. The paper links years of industrial decline and deregulation to a loss of expertise and planning capacity in government, the report said. Separately, it recommends that First Secretary of State Louise Haigh oversee the broader reindustrialization effort from No. 10 North in Manchester. The paper also proposes converting the National Wealth Fund into a Reindustrialisation Development Corporation to provide capital for industry, according to The Guardian.
The National Wealth Fund says it has £27.8 billion to deploy for the government’s growth and clean-power missions. HM Treasury owns and backs the fund, which operates independently and aims to mobilize private finance.
The government’s Industrial Strategy, published June 23, 2025, is a 10-year plan to increase business investment in eight sectors, including advanced manufacturing, clean energy, creative industries, defense, digital and technologies, financial services, life sciences, and professional and business services.
No. 10 North already handles local economic growth and devolution strategy. July changes transferred local economic growth policy from HM Treasury and local economic growth and devolution strategy from the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government to the Manchester office. Burnham told the House of Commons on Sept. 1 that No. 10 North would oversee reindustrialization in the regions and that the government would revive local industrial strategies. He described that approach as a policy used by the Theresa May government.
In a separate initiative, Burnham proposed talks with the Scottish Government on regional decision-making, linking the effort to jobs and economic opportunity across Scotland.
The next scheduled fiscal event is the Budget statement by Chancellor of the Exchequer John Healey on Wednesday, Oct. 28. Parliament lists it for about 8:30 a.m. ET (12:30 UTC).
