A former Treasury chief has warned Andy Burnham against carving up the flagship Whitehall department to move part of it to the North. Lord Nick Macpherson, a highly-respected Whitehall figure, stressed that such a move would risk ending in “failure”. He also said that it could hit Mr Burnham’s attempts to deliver the change in Britain craved by so many people across the country.
Burnham's plan for an economy ministry
Former Greater Manchester Mayor Mr Burnham is expected to become Prime Minister by mid-July after Sir Keir Starmer’s resignation. He is said to be getting economic advice from a series of experts including former Bank of England chief economist Andy Haldane who has previously suggested splitting up the Treasury. His plan would be to create an economy ministry, which he argued should be at the Treasury’s campus in Darlington to focus on growth, with a finance ministry remaining in Whitehall.
Lord Macpherson's warning
But former Treasury Permanent Secretary Lord Macpherson told The Standard: “Machinery of government changes like this are very disruptive and the new PM only has three years in which to make a difference. Previous attempts to split the Treasury have failed. Much better for the PM to appoint a Chancellor whom he can trust, who has the authority to stand up to Treasury officials where necessary and who can develop and implement a compelling strategy.”
Institute for Government also cautions
Alex Thomas, executive director at the Institute for Government, also warned against taking the axe to the Treasury. “As well as being a mistake, splitting the Treasury would distract civil servants and ministers with bureaucratic infighting for months if not longer,” he said. He believes that Mr Burnham, if he becomes PM, should focus immediately on addressing problems at the heart of Government when he has “maximum power” to push through reforms.
Priority on No10 and Cabinet Office
The former senior Cabinet Office official stressed: “No10 and the Cabinet Office should be the priority. No10 is too weak and the Cabinet Office is bloated, unfocused and has lost authority. The answer is not to dismantle part of Government that works well, the Treasury, it’s to harness the Treasury’s strength to Andy Burnham’s agenda.”
Conservative warning on relocation
Conservative London Assembly member Neil Garratt warned that if the Treasury was carved up it could suffer similar problems as when a large part of the Office for National Statistics was moved in 2007 to Newport in South Wales. “When the ONS was relocated, the overwhelming majority of staff chose not to move, expertise was lost, and the quality of our national statistics suffered for years,” he said.
Burnham's devolution plans
However, Mr Burnham is expected to announce radical change with far more devolution of power. “Andy wants to create regional engines of growth,” one ally told The Financial Times. Another said: “There are some clear policy strands emerging, including more devolution to localities, including fiscal devolution, and the need for more creative thinking on infrastructure spending.” However, there are concerns that Mr Burnham could adopt an anti-London stance in government. London Mayor Sir Sadiq Khan has already warned him not to siphon off funding for London to other parts of England. Under greater devolution, City Hall could get increased powers including possibly over more commuter rail lines into the capital.
