What the US can learn from London’s model

Connecting old industrial cities can revitalise the limping state economies of the country

By linking together major cities — including Manchester, Sheffield, Leeds, and Liverpool — the north could become far more unified, acting as a single regional economy of the last 20 years are ambitious but achievable.

The reality is that, with greater decision-making authority and more linkages and skills, England’s northern cities could become far more dynamic, potentially reversing decades of relative economic decline. The northern powerhouse strategy provides valuable lessons for other countries. China is already pursuing a similar regional development strategy, aimed at revitalising its old northern industrial belt, thereby taking some of the pressure off its ultra-dynamic coastal cities. The US should follow suit, with a plan to revitalise the so-called Rust Belt that was integral to Trump’s victory.

Of course, the US is much larger and its old industrial cities are much farther apart. But some of the ideas that have animated the northern powerhouse could enrich Trump’s economic plans considerably. Given that infrastructure investment is a key element of his agenda, and that devolution of powers to the states is popular among US Republicans, there certainly seems to be space for such an approach.

Jim O’Neill is former chairman of Goldman Sachs Asset Management and former Commercial Secretary to the UK

Treasury. —Project Syndicate