"Our cities need to be better connected" Luke Raikes, IPPR North on Jazz FM Business Breakfast

Weekly pay and public investment is falling in the North of England, while household wealth and life expectancy are far behind the rest of the country.

That’s according to the centre-left thinktank, the Institute for Public Policy Research, which is arguing the so-called Northern Powerhouse needs to move on from its initial focus on productivity and transport, investing in job creation and social structure.

The next phase must be “of the North, by the North, for the North” according to the report’s author Luke Raikes.