Are levelling up and devolution real, or are they just warm words and window dressing? Governments of all persuasions have stressed for decades the need to rebalance the English economy, but what has been achieved?

The devolved administrations of Northern Ireland, Scotland, and Wales have all experienced significant and tangible changes over the past 25 years. In England, the debates around city regions, elected mayors, and local government reform have continued, but progress and achievement have been slow.

Today’s Budget Statement included announcements around the New Towns Fund and Free Ports. As with all announcements of this ilk, there are winners and losers, but the decision-making process remains the same. These decisions are and will be made in Whitehall and Westminster, they are not devolved at all.

Instead of devolving funds and decision-making to the regions, and those elected to serve the people and businesses who live and work there, Whitehall patronage is still the default setting. This has been the case under Labour, Coalition, and Conservative led governments, in one guise or another.

If devolution is to work, then city regions and local government need to be given more meaningful powers and resources to make it work, whichever governance model is chosen. At the same time, they also need to work together more effectively, old habits are proving hard to break.

Give regions the funds they need and let them decide how and where they are spent. And let’s finally end the national competitive bidding process that takes local knowledge, one of the key advantages of devolution, out of the equation. If levelling up is to work, governments have to learn to let go.