Partner with business to take successes of ‘Manchesterism’ nationwide

17 Jul 2026 12:48 PM

The CBI has handed incoming Prime Minister Andy Burham and his key economic advisers a fresh Roadmap for Growth, setting out what business wants to see from the new administration.  

Intended as a business-backed contribution to the economic debate following the change in Prime Minister, the roadmap is based on insights and data from CBI members and shows how government can work with enterprise to make the former mayor’s ‘Manchesterism’ approach to economic development work across the country. 

• The paper is clear about the foundations of business confidence that the new government must keep: fiscal credibility; the single fiscal event; protected capital budgets; the Industrial Strategy; the Infrastructure Strategy; Mansion House reforms; regulatory reform; and the UK-EU reset.  
• It outlines the delivery systems that matter most for growth that should be accelerated: planning; grid connections; infrastructure; procurement; skills; AI adoption; public-private partnership models; and practical improvements to trade.  
• And it describes the factors holding back business dynamism that need to change: high energy costs; rising employment costs; skills gaps; tax and regulatory complexity; weak commercialisation; delivery failure; and a fiscal debate too focused on short-term headroom.  

Rain Newton-Smith, CBI Chief Executive, said: 

“We want Andy Burnham and his team to succeed. ‘Manchesterism’ provides a coherent theory of growth, and our members support the goal of good growth in every postcode. The challenge is execution.  

“The UK does not lack ambition. What business wants is delivery at a pace that matches the scale of the country’s economic challenge.  We cannot afford a summer of speculation and drift. 

“Firms want to see the new government keep what is restoring stability, accelerate the things that turn ambition into delivery, and change the factors holding back investment. 

“If the ambition is to rewire Britain around places, productive investment and rising living standards, business has to be central to that project. 

“Our members tell us that the combined pressure firms are facing across labour, energy, business rates, regulation, tax, planning and finance is resulting in less capacity to invest, innovate and boost jobs and wages. 

“That is why the divide between the cost of living and the cost of doing business is false. Business costs shape prices, wages, employment, investment and the tax base. If the new government wants higher employment, lower inactivity and stronger public finances, it needs to create the conditions for businesses to create jobs and invest with confidence.” 

Read the full roadmap: http://www.cbi.org.uk/articles/roadmap-for-growth/