New data from the Northern Powerhouse Partnership reveals that Greater Manchester has seen the biggest increase in productivity of any UK region or mayoralty over the past two decades, cementing its position as the UK’s productivity growth capital.
Between 2004 and 2023, Greater Manchester recorded the highest rise in gross value added (GVA) per hour worked, outperforming every other combined authority and city region for growth across the UK.
This followed a period of sustained investment in public transport and infrastructure, alongside the long term devolution of powers to Greater Manchester’s metro mayor, currently Andy Burnham.
The 31% increase in productivity is a huge achievement which has begun to meaningfully close the gap between the city region with London.
Meanwhile, Rotherham has emerged as one of the fastest growing sub-regional economies for productivity in the UK and the fastest-growing in the North, with a 63.9% increase in productivity over the same period.
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This dramatic improvement has been driven by the growth of the Advanced Manufacturing Innovation District shared with neighbouring Sheffield in South Yorkshire.
It includes the Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre which has attracted inward investment to the area and has most recently been helping with R&D for the Rolls Royce SMR (Small Modular Reactors) project.
Andrew McPhillips, chief economist for the Northern Powerhouse Partnership, said: “This is a milestone moment for the North.
“Greater Manchester leading the UK on productivity growth shows what’s possible with long-term leadership with ambition, major investment in public transport and more powers through devolution.
“More of the great Northern cities are taking their destiny in their own hands as Greater Manchester did and we can expect similar success, particularly if their respective economies become better connected through projects initially like TransPennine Route Upgrade and start to be able to reinforce each other’s growth.”
He added: “Rotherham’s success at the heart of South Yorkshire shows how industrial innovation, skills and regeneration can transform a local economy. The Advanced Manufacturing Park has put Rotherham on the global map, this is the kind of model we need to replicate right across the North from Atom Valley to Goole in the Humber Freeport.”
Mayor of Greater Manchester, Andy Burnham, said: “Greater Manchester has been the UK’s economic success story over the past two decades. We are showing what can be achieved when ambition is matched by devolution and investment, forging a path for other English cities and regions to follow.
“We are beginning to close the productivity gap with London and the South East, but the job is far from over, and we are already hitting constraints.
“We need the government to give us the right powers and funding, particularly on transport and skills, so that we can remove those constraints and accelerate our city region’s growth in the decades to come, creating opportunities and prosperity for our people while powering the growth of the UK economy.”
