Dear Prime Minister,
The future of the South Midlands - An open letter on devolution and the case for six
I am writing to you not simply as Leader of the Opposition on Milton Keynes City Council, but as someone who believes very strongly in the economic potential of the region I represent.
Prime Minister, you spent nearly a decade as Mayor of Greater Manchester demonstrating what can happen when a region has the scale, leadership and power to shape its own future. You have made that experience central to your Government, speaking about moving power out of Whitehall, driving regional growth and giving places greater control over their own futures. It is precisely because of that experience that I am appealing directly to you to look again at what is happening in the South Midlands.
I know that not everyone wants devolution. Many residents across the South Midlands remain unconvinced that another layer of governance is needed, and some local authorities have raised the same doubts. I understand and we respect that view. But Government has made clear this is happening, so if a strategic authority is going to be created, the geography we choose matters enormously. Milton Keynes City Council's Liberal Democrat-Labour administration is backing the wrong one: a Mayoral Strategic Authority based on Bedford, Luton, Central Bedfordshire and Milton Keynes - BLMK.
I do not believe that submission should be read as evidence of a settled regional consensus. Significant questions remain - within Milton Keynes and among neighbouring authorities - about whether BLMK is the strongest economic geography for devolution. Central Bedfordshire Council has itself said that BLMK would be too small a footprint to carry real influence, and North and West Northamptonshire have consistently said they want to be part of a wider structure. The six-unitary South Midlands has previously been presented as meeting Government's own tests on population and economic coherence, and Northamptonshire continues to identify the wider South Midlands as offering greater opportunity for growth. We have the opportunity to build something considerably stronger by bringing them both back to the table.
For years, the six authorities have already worked together as the South Midlands: a shared South Midlands Business Board, and joint programmes supporting businesses, skills and employment. This is not a geography invented for the purposes of devolution. It already exists. And economically, the case is compelling.
Your Government has called for greater "ambition, pace and scale", and has encouraged areas to consider going further than they first thought possible. I agree. That is precisely why I am asking you to look again at the six-unitary South Midlands.
The economic case for six
Prime Minister, the case for six is not simply that bigger must be better. It is that these are six complementary economies which, together, create a much stronger regional proposition. The six authorities represent more than 80,000 businesses and contribute over £50 billion every year to the UK economy.
Milton Keynes brings a £16.7 billion economy, technology, financial services, logistics, international investment, the Open University and a concentration of major global employers. Bedford brings the transformational Universal investment - billions of pounds, thousands of jobs and the potential for one of Europe's most significant new visitor economies. Central Bedfordshire brings Cranfield University, aerospace and advanced engineering, and a crucial position connecting the biggest economic opportunities across the region. Luton brings an international airport, aerospace, manufacturing and global connectivity. North Northamptonshire brings manufacturing, food production and logistics, while West Northamptonshire brings Silverstone and one of the world's great concentrations of motorsport, advanced engineering and high-performance technology.
And these aren't disconnected assets on a list. They are increasingly connected by the M1, A14, A43, A421/A428, West Coast Main Line and East West Rail, sitting within and alongside the Oxford-Cambridge Growth Corridor. That connectivity matters: a business investing in Universal's supply chain does not care whether its premises are in Bedford or Northamptonshire, and an engineering business around Silverstone can draw on research expertise at Cranfield and technology talent in Milton Keynes.
That is the economic case for six. Not six councils for the sake of scale, but six economies whose strengths complement one another. Together they could build something considerably more powerful that could bring vast amounts of investment into the region. We need to stop presenting Whitehall with a collection of neighbouring local authorities and start presenting Britain, and the world, with an economic region capable of competing for investment on a national and international scale.
I have set out the detailed economic, investment, infrastructure and growth case for each of the six authorities in the appendix to this letter. This is not simply about drawing an administrative boundary and electing a mayor. It is about economic scale, transport, skills, investment, and the confidence to attract it -because before Government can distribute wealth, somewhere has to create it. The South Midlands has extraordinary potential to do exactly that. That is why I struggle to understand why the administration in Milton Keynes would deliberately think smaller.
Residents’ democratic legitimacy
Residents understandably feel increasingly removed from the process. There has been no referendum, and it is my understanding that there will be none. Many residents feel that another significant layer of governance, including a directly elected regional mayor, is being created around them rather than with them.
Business voices should be heard
Before Government settles on BLMK, please ask the businesses of this region what they think. Not political parties. Not council leaders. But those that create wealth and provide opportunities for the entire region. Ask the South Midlands Business Board, Silverstone and the advanced-engineering sector, our logistics businesses, the businesses that will form Universal's supply chain, the universities and colleges developing our future workforce, and the investors deciding where the next generation of jobs will be created.
Ask them whether they believe BLMK gives this region the strongest possible economic platform, or whether a six-unitary South Midlands would give us greater scale, connectivity and opportunity. And then publish what they tell you. If the evidence demonstrates that BLMK is the stronger economic geography, then those of us arguing for six must listen to that evidence. But if businesses tell Government that the wider South Midlands makes greater economic sense, I hope you will have the courage to listen to them too.
Regional devolution should be driven by public benefit, not politics
This should not be about Labour, Liberal Democrat, Reform or Conservative political interests. It should not be about protecting existing relationships or getting a proposal through because it is procedurally easier or politically beneficial to some political parties. It should be about what gives this region the greatest possible opportunity to prosper.
Thinking big for the region
Prime Minister, Greater Manchester did not become one of Britain's most influential regional economies by thinking small. It built an identity, and an ambition, bigger than any one of its constituent councils - and the South Midlands deserves the same ambition. The Devolution White Paper sets a default population benchmark of 1.5 million for a Mayoral Strategic Authority. BLMK falls well short of that, with a population under one million. Bring North and West Northamptonshire back to the table, and the South Midlands reaches 1.7 million - comfortably clearing the bar BLMK cannot.
We have Milton Keynes at its commercial heart. We have an international airport. We have Silverstone and one of the world's great advanced-engineering clusters. We have Cranfield and the Open University. We have Universal bringing billions of pounds of international investment. We have East West Rail, the M1, A421 and A14 connecting us, and the Oxford-Cambridge Growth Corridor running through our economic future. We have the ingredients. What we need now is the confidence to think at the same scale as the opportunity.
Milton Keynes should stop thinking simply like a city and start thinking like the economic capital of the South Midlands. And the South Midlands should stop thinking like six neighbouring councils and start recognising the economic powerhouse it could become. Britain cannot become more prosperous unless its regions become more prosperous. Wealth has to be created before it can be distributed, and infrastructure has to anticipate growth rather than chase it afterwards.
Prime Minister, you have made regional growth one of the defining ambitions of your premiership. I am asking you to intervene and make the right call for ours. So before these boundaries harden into institutions that could last for generations, please give the businesses and people of the South Midlands the opportunity to make their case. Test the economic case for four against the economic case for six. Publish the evidence. And if devolution is genuinely about moving power closer to people, then surely those people, and the businesses creating the wealth and jobs on which their communities depend, deserve a meaningful voice in deciding what their region should become.
I appeal to you to look at the South Midlands through the lens you brought to Greater Manchester: not what arrangement is easiest to agree politically, but what arrangement gives the region the greatest opportunity to succeed economically.
Please help us get this right.
Yours sincerely,
Councillor Shazna Muzammil
Leader of the Opposition
Milton Keynes City Council
APPENDIX TO THE OPEN LETTER TO THE PRIME MINISTER
THE ECONOMIC CASE FOR SIX
Milton Keynes · Bedford · Central Bedfordshire · Luton · North Northamptonshire · West Northamptonshire
Six complementary economies. One regional opportunity.
The case for a six-unitary South Midlands is not simply about creating a larger strategic authority. It is about bringing together six complementary economies, each contributing different strengths to a region that already functions across administrative boundaries.
Together, Milton Keynes, Bedford, Central Bedfordshire, Luton, North Northamptonshire and West Northamptonshire represent more than 80,000 businesses and over £50 billion of annual economic activity.
They are connected by major national infrastructure including the M1, A14, A43, A421, West Coast Main Line and East West Rail, and sit within or alongside the Oxford-Cambridge Growth Corridor.
- Milton Keynes - the commercial and connectivity engine
Milton Keynes brings scale, connectivity and a track record of attracting national and international investment.
The city already has an economy worth more than £16.7 billion, with productivity around 25% above the national average. Its economy spans technology, financial services, logistics, advanced engineering, manufacturing, retail and professional services.
International businesses have already chosen Milton Keynes. Volkswagen Group, Mercedes-Benz, Brioche Pasquier, Xero, Zoho, Tech Mahindra, Domino's and Papa John's have their UK headquarters here. Santander has invested £150 million in its UK headquarters and digital hub beside Milton Keynes Central. Red Bull Racing and Technologies is headquartered here, connecting Milton Keynes directly into the wider South Midlands' high-performance engineering and motorsport economy.
Other major names demonstrate the breadth of the city's economy: Network Rail's national headquarters, John Lewis's national distribution operation at Magna Park, Rightmove, Volkswagen Financial Services, Niftylift and the Open University, alongside hundreds of internationally owned businesses.
This isn't simply a city that wants to attract global investment. It already does.
Its technology workforce alone is estimated at around 45,000 people, with particular strengths in AI, data analytics, robotics and engineering technology, alongside significant financial-services and fintech activity.
Milton Keynes is also a nationally important transport location. Sitting on the M1 and West Coast Main Line, it is at the heart of East West Rail, strengthening connections towards Bedford, Cambridge and Oxford and reinforcing its position within the Oxford-Cambridge Growth Corridor.
The scale of future growth is equally significant. The MK City Plan 2050 provides for almost 60,000 homes across the plan period alongside substantial employment and infrastructure growth. Government has separately selected Milton Keynes as one of the locations being considered for its next generation of New Towns, with a proposed renewed-town vision involving around 40,000 homes. These figures should not simply be added together because there is overlap between the proposals, but both demonstrate the scale of growth being contemplated.
Milton Keynes also brings significant educational, sporting and cultural assets. It is home to the Open University, the UK's largest university, while Stadium MK and the National Bowl give the city major regional and national sporting and events infrastructure.
Put all of this together - major employers, international investment, technology, financial services, high-performance engineering, logistics, higher education, East West Rail, the M1, the West Coast Main Line and substantial future growth - and Milton Keynes has the potential not simply to participate in a South Midlands economy, but to become its commercial and economic capital.
- Bedford - a once-in-a-generation catalyst
Bedford brings something genuinely transformational to the South Midlands: Universal's planned UK theme park and resort.
This is not simply another visitor attraction. Comcast NBCUniversal plans to invest more than £5 billion during construction, followed by further capital investment during its first decade of operation. The development has been estimated to generate nearly £50 billion of economic benefit, create around 20,000 construction jobs and 8,000 permanent jobs, and attract an estimated 8.5 million visitors in its opening year, potentially rising to12 million annually.
That scale has the potential to transform far more than Bedford.
Millions of additional visitors create demand for hotels, restaurants, hospitality, retail, entertainment, transport and tourism businesses across the wider South Midlands. Universal will require extensive supply chains, creating opportunities for businesses in construction, engineering, technology, food and drink, professional services and the creative industries.
Around 80% of Universal's employees are expected to come from Bedfordshire and surrounding areas, creating opportunities for apprenticeships, skills development and partnerships with colleges and universities.
And then there is infrastructure. Government has committed around £1.3 billion towards regional and local infrastructure associated with the development. Plans include improvements around Wixams station, new access from the A421 and other road and transport improvements.
Bedford is also central to East West Rail, connecting Milton Keynes through Bedford towards Cambridge and placing Universal within the wider Oxford-Cambridge Growth Corridor.
Bedford itself is planning significant housing growth, meaning the economic transformation around Universal will sit alongside substantial changes in housing, employment and infrastructure.
But perhaps the greatest opportunity is what Universal could trigger next. A global destination attracting millions of visitors every year creates a reason for other international investors to look differently at Bedford and the surrounding region. It could stimulate further investment in hotels, hospitality, creative and digital businesses, entertainment, supply chains and commercial development.
Universal therefore should not be viewed as Bedford's opportunity alone. It should be treated as a regional economic catalyst. The prize isn't simply bringing millions of people to Bedford. It is giving them and the businesses investing because of them - a reason to spend, stay, employ and invest across the whole South Midlands.
- Central Bedfordshire - the strategic bridge
Central Bedfordshire should not simply be viewed as the geography between Milton Keynes, Bedford and Luton. It is an economic asset in its own right and a critical link connecting some of the biggest growth opportunities in the South Midlands.
It is home to Cranfield University, with internationally recognised strengths in science, engineering and aerospace, and to Millbrook Proving Ground, a major centre for automotive and mobility testing and innovation.
Major employers including Nissan, Lockheed Martin, Collins Aerospace, MBDA Systems and Amazon have a presence in the area, contributing to an established base in advanced engineering, aerospace, logistics and technology.
Central Bedfordshire is also an area of significant planned growth. The Marston Vale proposals alone include up to 5,000 homes and 30 hectares of employment land, while other strategic growth locations are planned across the authority.
Immediately next door, Universal's Bedford development will create significant demand for housing, skills, transport, hospitality and supply chains that will inevitably extend beyond Bedford Borough.
Then look at connectivity. Central Bedfordshire sits between the M1, A1, A421 and the Oxford-Cambridge Growth Corridor. The transformation of Black Cat and construction of the new A428 dual carriageway will remove the final single-carriageway section on the strategic route between the M1 near Milton Keynes and the east-coast ports, strengthening connections from Milton Keynes and Bedford towards Cambridge and international freight routes.
Put Cranfield's research and engineering capability alongside Milton Keynes' technology and logistics economy, Bedford's Universal investment, Luton's international airport and Northamptonshire's advanced-engineering and motorsport cluster, and Central Bedfordshire becomes much more than a connecting authority. It becomes the strategic bridge between them.
Housing growth in Central Bedfordshire affects jobs and services in Milton Keynes and Bedford. Universal will affect transport and skills far beyond Bedford. Black Cat improves an economic corridor stretching from the M1 towards Cambridge and the east-coast ports. Cranfield's research supports industries across the wider region. These aren't six isolated economies. The decisions made in one increasingly determine the opportunities and pressures experienced in the others.
- Luton - our gateway to the world
Luton gives the South Midlands something few competing regions possess: a major international airport alongside an established aerospace and advanced-manufacturing cluster. Its economy has particular strengths in aerospace, pharmaceuticals, electronics, manufacturing, engineering and logistics.
ndon Luton Airport provides the wider South Midlands with direct international connectivity for businesses, investors, visitors and residents. London Luton Airport's approved expansion is projected to create up to 11,000 new jobs and generate an additional £1.5 billion a year for the economy.
But Luton's importance becomes considerably greater when viewed as part of the wider South Midlands. Its international connectivity can serve Northamptonshire's engineering and manufacturing businesses, Milton Keynes' technology and commercial economy and the enormous visitor market being created around Universal. Its aerospace expertise complements Cranfield's research capabilities and Northamptonshire's high-performance engineering, creating the potential for deeper regional collaboration in advanced technology, mobility, aerospace and engineering.
Luton is therefore not simply an airport at the southern edge of the region. It is the South Midlands' international gateway.
- North Northamptonshire - manufacturing, logistics and production
North Northamptonshire brings an £8.2 billion economy and a population of around 360,000. Its location is particularly valuable: the council states that around 95% of the UK population is within a four-hour drive, helping to explain its strength in logistics, manufacturing and distribution.
Global and nationally significant businesses including Weetabix, Danone/Alpro and Tayto already manufacture there, supported by supply chains stretching across the country and overseas.
North Northamptonshire therefore brings something different to the regional proposition: large-scale production, manufacturing, food and drink, logistics and nationally important supply chains.
It is also growing. Its economic strategy records that jobs have grown faster than its working-age population over the past twenty years, while substantial housing and employment growth is planned around its main towns.
Stanton Cross at Wellingborough alone provides for 3,650 homes, alongside employment land and major infrastructure.
Further investment in the A43 between Kettering and Northampton will support a corridor where around 4,850 new homes are planned, with Government's contribution towards the next phase currently expected to be at least £31 million.
The A43 is itself important to the regional argument, providing a strategic connection between North and West Northamptonshire and onwards towards the M1 and Milton Keynes.
North Northamptonshire's manufacturing and production economy therefore complements rather than duplicates the technology, aviation, research and service-sector strengths elsewhere in the South Midlands.
- West Northamptonshire - a globally recognised innovation asset
West Northamptonshire brings one of Britain's most internationally recognised advanced-engineering clusters.
Silverstone is not simply the home of British Formula One.
Around it sits an ecosystem of motorsport, research and development, high-performance engineering and advanced manufacturing, including businesses such as Mercedes-AMG Petronas, Aston Martin and Cosworth.
Silverstone Park itself is home to over 80 high-tech and engineering businesses, creating a concentration of engineering, technology and innovation with an international reputation.
These are precisely the high-productivity, export-orientated industries Britain wants to grow.
West Northamptonshire also occupies a strategic position on the M1 and A43, connecting Northamptonshire with Milton Keynes and the wider M1 corridor, and northwards towards the A14.
Major investment is already taking place along the A45 and A43 corridors, while Northampton Gateway has freight connectivity into the East West Rail network. There have also been calls for Northampton itself to be included in future East West Rail passenger services.
This matters because it shows that the economic and transport relationships between Northamptonshire, Milton Keynes and Bedfordshire are already developing irrespective of administrative boundaries.
Now combine West Northamptonshire's engineering capability with Cranfield's research and aerospace expertise, Luton's aviation sector, Milton Keynes' technology and future-mobility economy and the research capabilities of universities across the region. The opportunity is much bigger than six councils sharing a mayor. It is the opportunity to build an innovation, engineering and technology corridor of genuine international significance.
The proposition created by bringing the six together
Individually, each of these areas has a strong economic proposition. Together, they create something considerably more distinctive: Technology. Financial services. Logistics. International aviation. Tourism and entertainment. Research. Aerospace. Advanced manufacturing. Food production. Motorsport. High-performance engineering. And those economies are connected by infrastructure that already crosses administrative boundaries:
East West Rail.
The West Coast Main Line.
The M1.
The A14.
The A43.
The A421/A428 corridor.
The Oxford-Cambridge Growth Corridor.
This is why the argument for six should not be reduced to the proposition that bigger must automatically be better. That is not the case being made. The case is that these six economies are complementary, interconnected and already economically interdependent.
Milton Keynes brings commercial scale, technology and connectivity.
Bedford brings a transformational visitor economy and international investment.
Central Bedfordshire brings research, engineering, strategic land and connectivity.
Luton brings an international gateway and aerospace expertise.
North Northamptonshire brings manufacturing, food production and logistics.
West Northamptonshire brings a globally significant engineering and motorsport cluster.
Not six councils for the sake of scale, but six complementary economies with the potential to become considerably more powerful together.
That economic proposition deserves to be properly tested against BLMK before decisions are taken that could shape the region for the next thirty or forty years.
