Alex Massie Alex Massie

Baby Steps in the Provinces

One of the good features in the government’s Localism Bill is the proposal for referenda on more directly-elected mayors. At present it seems only a dozen English* towns and cities are taking advantage of these plans but one hopes more will do so in the future. Contemplating this, Bagehot chews on centralisation and London’s hegemony in British (and especially English) life.

As he observes, generally speaking London has been the dominant city in England for centuries, dwarfing its rivals. But there was a spell when this wasn’t the case and one need only look at Town Halls and Corn Exchanges and museums and galleries and Assembly Rooms across Britain to appreciate that there was an era when provincial towns and cities boasted a confidence expressed in brick and stone. Not just that, either. Birmingham could produce a political dynasty and Manchester an entire school of liberalism and much else besides.

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