Core Cities Group ______
RESPONSE TO: RSA City Growth Commission: Open Call for Evidence DATE: Thursday 9th January SUBJECT: Call for Evidence REPORT OF: Core Cities Group __________________________________________________________________ 1. England’s Core Cities and their role Core Cities are a unique and united voice to promote the role of our cities in driving economic growth. We represent the City Authorities at the centre of England’s eight largest economies outside London: Birmingham, Bristol, Liverpool, Leeds, Manchester, Newcastle, Nottingham and Sheffield. Core Cities Group develop evidence-based policies that support the critical role of these important cities in delivering the country’s full economic potential, creating more jobs and improving people’s lives. Our cities already contribute more than a quarter of England’s wealth, yet by international standards they are underperforming, largely due to the heavily centralised state system within which they operate in England. With devolution to Scotland, and further decentralisation now on the table for Wales, this constitutional imbalance is further heightened, which has real economic consequences for the whole of the UK. The Core Cities together with their surrounding urban areas: are home to 16 million people, almost a third of the population of England (set to grow by at least 1 million by 2030) generate 27% of England’s wealth (more than London) are home to half of the country’s leading research universities contain 28% of highly skilled workers (graduate level or above) Core Cities are a vital delivery partner for Government and its agencies and are best placed to improve the UK’s economic fortunes. They already deliver an enormous amount for the country, but with the right freedoms and flexibilities in place, they could do a lot more.
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