Prime Minister Andy Burnham has officially opened the doors to No 10 North in Manchester, calling it the 'best day of my life' as he addressed staff at the new government headquarters in the city centre.
Burnham's Emotional Return to Manchester
Speaking to personnel at Heron House, near Albert Square, on Friday morning, Burnham reflected on his personal journey. 'I cannot tell you what a proud moment this is. I think this might be the best day of my life,' he said. 'I'm not joking. I know you think I am, but I'm not. Things are just completely coming full circle here, for me to be here with you all in the heart of Manchester this Friday morning at the end of a fairly big week is just everything to me.'
He recalled leaving the city 35 years ago as a recent graduate unable to find work. 'It was in a pretty bad place at that time, it's fair to say, because the 80s had turned into the 90s, there wasn't much. That really is an experience that I've never forgotten, my generation of people growing up here. And it's true of places all over the country to get on in life, you had to leave where you were because things weren't here.'
A New Era for Government Presence in the North
The Prime Minister emphasised that No 10 North symbolises a shift in power away from London. 'The country has always been a little like that, hasn't it? That opportunity has not been evenly spread around the country, and not all places have felt that they are part of the national story, and that is what this Government is going to work every single day to change.'
He added: 'And that is what No 10 North is all about: putting power in every postcode so that people can turn things around for themselves and make changes, just as this great city has done, and the other English cities are doing through devolution, turning things round because of that ability to be able to do more for themselves. And it's also about getting the whole country facing the same way, and then pulling in the same direction, that I think is what No 10 North can achieve.'
The new headquarters also houses GCHQ's Manchester and North West hub. Burnham stated that Whitehall opposition to devolution is 'over for good' ahead of the landmark occasion, according to the Manchester Evening News.
Weekly Operations and Economic Council Meeting
Burnham is expected to work from the Manchester site once a week during his tenure. On Friday, he is set to lead a session of the National Economic Council, a Cabinet committee originally established in 2008 to address economic difficulties.
Defending the cost of establishing No 10 North, Burnham acknowledged that critics – 'often London based' – might view it as a 'gimmick'. He said: 'There'll be many voices out there, I can hear them all already, often London based, but not exclusively... They like to say, "Oh, this will just be the new levelling up, or another sort of short-lived gimmick", and they'll also say "What's it going to cost?".'
He countered: 'What does it cost for everybody to troop down to London every time there's a meeting when you need to make an argument about something? What does that cost? So actually, isn't it better that we have a North Pole that balances the South Pole of our country, where power will always be concentrated? At least it creates that sense of a more balanced country, and that big things can be done from here.'
