Burnham’s devolution plan not a ‘Hunger Games,’ Rayner insists

Angela Rayner has dismissed claims that Andy Burnham’s devolution plan forces regions into a “Hunger Games”-style competition for government funding, insisting the approach empowers local leaders without pitting them against one another.

Rayner rejects ‘begging bowl’ criticism of devolution

Speaking ahead of the first meeting of Burnham’s “No 10 North” initiative in Manchester, the Housing Secretary compared the proposed system to a collaborative effort rather than a zero-sum contest. She cited West Yorkshire Mayor Tracey Brabin’s hypothetical tram scheme as an example, stating that regional leaders would invest devolved funds directly rather than plead for central government support.

“It’s not the begging bowl of going ‘I think I need a tram, can you please give it to me?’—some sort of Hunger Games as we pitch one part of the country against another,” Rayner said. The 2012 film *The Hunger Games* depicts impoverished districts forced into lethal competition for resources from a wealthy central authority, a comparison Burnham’s critics have used to describe the devolution proposals.

Burnham’s vision for regional power shift

The Greater Manchester Mayor, a longtime advocate for devolution, described his first day at No 10 North as “the best day of my life.” The initiative aims to decentralize political power from Whitehall, with Burnham pledging to “take power out of here, and carry it into every postcode in the land.”

Burnham’s plan includes stronger public control over sectors like water, transport, and housing. Reflecting on Manchester’s economic struggles in the 1990s, he framed the initiative as a personal and regional turning point: “It was in a pretty bad place at that time... there wasn’t much.”

What’s next for UK devolution

The government has not yet outlined specific funding mechanisms for the devolution plan, but Rayner emphasized a duty to support regional leaders’ projects. Observers will watch for details on how power and resources will be allocated, with Burnham’s No 10 North serving as the operational hub for implementation.