Centre for Cities

Britain is behind G7 peers on mass transit delivery

Centre for Cities today sets out details of the devolved measures and reforms that can help mayors to take control of local ...
Centre for Cities

Nine in 10 new higher-paid jobs created in cities

Between 2014 and 2024 cities added 1.9 million jobs, accounting for 76 per cent of all new jobs created in Britain.
centreforcities

What does Andy Burnham think ‘Good Growth’ is?

Andy Burnham has pledged to deliver ‘good growth in every postcode’. Below, we look at his Good Growth Fund in Greater Manchester and what it could indicate about his approach to national economic ...
centreforcities

City Talks: Lessons from City Deals

Andrew Carter, Chief Executive, is joined by Ian Taylor, Associate at the City-Region Economic Development Institute (City-Redi), and Philip McCann, Sir Terry Leahy Chair of Urban and Regional ...
centreforcities

Mayors want better transport infrastructure. Here’s how Government can help them build it

With approval first secured in 1993, many expected trams in Leeds to be running within a decade. But in 2026, they are inexplicably further away than 30 years ago. With the latest delay, West ...
centreforcities

Most households could see annual council tax bills fall by nearly £500 under proposals to reform system

Council tax reform could save over two thirds of households in England almost £500 on annual tax bill by giving local authorities powers to set fairer tax rates. Reforms would transform council tax ...
centreforcities

‘Medium’ sites should be exempt from on-site affordable housing

One of the Government’s big planning reforms is a shake-up of affordable housing in England. The new National Planning Policy Framework has proposed that more new affordable housing should be funded ...
centreforcities

Licence to build: Delivering urban transport infrastructure through devolution

Mayors across England have big ambitions for expanding their urban transport networks. From Greater Manchester’s Metrolink extension to new Merseyrail stations in Liverpool City Region, places are ...
centreforcities

For urban transport delivery, Government must deliver on devolution

The interrelated bottlenecks across powers, planning, financing and capacity all reduce the ability of mayors to deliver improvements to their transport infrastructure. This holds back investment and ...
centreforcities

Cities don’t grow alone: Why good growth needs big and small cities working together

The challenge for government is to get big cities generating higher-paid jobs and also provide better access to those opportunities from smaller places. The Prime Minister has made good growth in ...
centreforcities

The Prime Minister is right: Scotland needs deeper devolution, starting with Glasgow

Glasgow is the most important part of Scotland's devolution puzzle to get right, and deeper devolution to the city-region should come with a metro mayor. Blog post published on 21 October 2026 by Jess ...