Andy Burnham has opened his first conversation with Britain’s business lobby by telling firms this government wants a different sort of deal: less drift from Whitehall, quicker decisions and more say for the people actually hiring, building and trading on the ground. In calls held on Friday 24 July with groups including the CBI, British Chambers of Commerce, Federation of Small Businesses, Make UK, Small Business Britain and Startup Coalition, the Prime Minister pitched a partnership built around investment, jobs and growth that reaches ‘every postcode’. (gov.uk) For readers across the North, the language lands because the problem is recognisable. Burnham spoke of ‘boarded-up shops’ and employers who feel they ‘haven’t been heard across Whitehall’, a line that will ring true in town centres where empty units and squeezed margins are not an abstract Westminster debate but the daily backdrop for local traders. (gov.uk)

The immediate offer is lower costs and a steadier line of travel. Burnham says ministers will bring down costs, reform business rates and give businesses more certainty so owners can plan ahead rather than second-guess the next policy lurch. That sits alongside the announcement on 23 July of 20 per cent business rates relief for pubs, clubs and live music venues, which the Government says will save the typical pub about £1,100 next year. (gov.uk) That matters in northern town centres where pubs, social clubs and smaller venues do more than pour pints or sell tickets. They keep footfall alive, they support nearby independents and they give battered high streets a reason to stay open after five. If ministers want business to believe this is a fresh start, backing those places is a sensible place to begin. (gov.uk)

Just as important is where Burnham says decisions should be made. He is arguing for a more agile state, with more decisions taken closer to communities, employers and investors, and that sits neatly with the launch of No10 North on 23 July and a revived National Economic Council that will bring regional mayors into the room. (gov.uk) For northern councils and combined authorities, this is the part worth watching most closely. Burnham has said ‘the days of Whitehall resisting devolution are over’, but businesses from Hull to Lancashire will judge that promise on whether stalled schemes move faster, regeneration money turns up sooner and local leaders actually get the power to make calls rather than simply host consultations. (gov.uk)

This is not being sold as a hands-off arrangement. The Government says it will step in where markets or regulators are not working for ordinary households, especially on essentials such as energy and water, while also trying to reduce the frictions that make trading and hiring harder for decent employers. (gov.uk) In return, Burnham is asking businesses to do more than bank the support. He wants firms to invest in staff, back their communities and help rebuild local confidence, with ministers also promising to use public procurement to back British business by default so public spending supports jobs, apprenticeships, innovation and skills across the country. (gov.uk)

One of the clearest asks from the Prime Minister is on youth unemployment. He wants employers to help restore the ‘first rung in the ladder’ into work, arguing that too many young people leave school without a clear route into a job and too many firms still struggle to recruit the skilled staff they need. (gov.uk) That point will travel in the North because it is felt street by street. In towns still rebuilding after industrial decline, the gap between school, college and proper work can be stubbornly wide. Burnham is trying to make this new pact with business about more than investment announcements; he wants it tied to apprenticeships, entry-level jobs and better chances for young people who have been shut out too early. (gov.uk)

The wider backdrop is rougher than the upbeat language suggests. On 24 July, ministers were also pointing to a fresh round of US tariffs while arguing that the UK’s Economic Prosperity Deal remains in place, leaving zero tariffs on whisky and medical technology. For exporters and manufacturers, certainty on trade terms matters almost as much as any domestic promise about reform. (gov.uk) That is especially relevant in northern manufacturing belts, where hiring plans and capital spending are often made against volatile energy costs, shaky global demand and tight margins. A government that says it wants to ‘reindustrialise Britain’ will need to show that trade policy, industrial policy and local growth policy are finally pulling in the same direction. (gov.uk)

There is also a structural change sitting behind the sales pitch. The new Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade was created earlier in the week, and Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds said he had engaged more than 200 business leaders alongside the AI Minister as the new administration began setting out its stall. (gov.uk) The list around Burnham’s calls was broad, stretching from the CBI, British Chambers of Commerce and Federation of Small Businesses to Co-operatives UK, Social Enterprise UK, Citizens Advice and the TUC. That allows ministers to say this is about the whole economy, not just the boardroom. For northern readers, though, the test is simpler than any press release: fuller order books, fewer empty units and a quicker route from idea to job on the ground. (gov.uk)