3 ms·

I'm ok with London as a financial center being destroyed if it means the rest of the UK gets more resources & investment, and thus wealth spreads more equally.

I'm ok with London as a financial center being destroyed if it means the rest of the UK gets more resources & investment, and thus wealth spreads more equally. It's always been wild to me the difference between London & the rest of the UK.

elliekelly 4y ago
But the pie will be smaller. Much smaller. And there’s no reason to think the average Brit will be getting a bigger piece of it. If anything I’d expect the exact opposite.
jen20 4y ago
That isn't what it means though: it means everywhere getting fewer resources and less investment.
laurencerowe 4y ago
The UK does need to lift up areas outside of London but it cannot afford to do that by bringing London down. Before the pandemic, "London had the highest net fiscal surplus per head at £4,030." [1] If London were destroyed as a financial centre the rest of the UK will necessarily get far less resources & investment. [1] https://www.ons.gov.uk/economy/governmentpublicsectorandtaxes/publicsectorfinance/articles/countryandregionalpublicsectorfinances/financialyearending2020 https://www.ons.gov.uk/economy/governmentpublicsectorandtaxe...
acchow 4y ago
> I'm ok with London as a financial center being destroyed if it means the rest of the UK gets more resources & investment Wouldn't London becoming less productive mean the rest of the UK gets fewer resources and investment?
- yummypaint 4y ago
  Part of the reason London received so much investment was because it was a major source of income. If other parts of the country ramp up economic activity relative to london, they should get more attention.
retrac 4y ago
It's not that unusual a situation. Toronto (with about 30% of Ontario's population) produces some 60% of the province's GDP. Ontario without Toronto would be about as wealthy as Poland, per capita. Perhaps all we're noticing here is that there are tremendous gains in efficiency to packing people in densely in large cities.

elliekelly 4y ago

But the pie will be smaller. Much smaller. And there’s no reason to think the average Brit will be getting a bigger piece of it. If anything I’d expect the exact opposite.

jen20 4y ago

That isn't what it means though: it means everywhere getting fewer resources and less investment.

laurencerowe 4y ago

The UK does need to lift up areas outside of London but it cannot afford to do that by bringing London down. Before the pandemic, "London had the highest net fiscal surplus per head at £4,030." [1] If London were destroyed as a financial centre the rest of the UK will necessarily get far less resources & investment. [1] https://www.ons.gov.uk/economy/governmentpublicsectorandtaxes/publicsectorfinance/articles/countryandregionalpublicsectorfinances/financialyearending2020 https://www.ons.gov.uk/economy/governmentpublicsectorandtaxe...

acchow 4y ago

> I'm ok with London as a financial center being destroyed if it means the rest of the UK gets more resources & investment Wouldn't London becoming less productive mean the rest of the UK gets fewer resources and investment?

yummypaint 4y ago
Part of the reason London received so much investment was because it was a major source of income. If other parts of the country ramp up economic activity relative to london, they should get more attention.

retrac 4y ago

It's not that unusual a situation. Toronto (with about 30% of Ontario's population) produces some 60% of the province's GDP. Ontario without Toronto would be about as wealthy as Poland, per capita. Perhaps all we're noticing here is that there are tremendous gains in efficiency to packing people in densely in large cities.