The North in Numbers: Paper 1 from the Northern Economic Agenda project

This paper provides a background analysis of the economic, social and environmental aspects of the development of the three northern regions of England - the North East, North West and Yorkshire and the Humber. This crucial overview gives an opportunity to appreciate the strengths and weaknesses of the regions and considers how to increase the productivity of the economy and its performance.

There are positive factors and assets which are currently underestimated and thus not used effectively to close the productivity gap between the most prosperous regions of the South, and the least developed regions of the North of England. Our in-depth analysis demonstrates that the three northern regions of England are lagging behind the Greater South East on many economic and social indicators, however they perform relatively well against the wider range of the indicators.