Connecting and levelling up the UK: A conversation with Lord Kerslake

The Queen’s Speech this week – which sets out the UK Government’s legislative programme for Parliament – promised to level up opportunities across all parts of the United Kingdom, supporting jobs, businesses and economic growth, as well as addressing the impact of the COVID pandemic on public services. Levelling up the UK economy is an ambitious vision which goes to the heart of many of the structural and spatial challenges that towns and cities face. How do we create more jobs, growth and opportunities across the country, and not just in our largest cities or the South East corner of England? How can digitisation, the innovation economy and better connected places help us to address disparities between and within places? What next for devolution in a country that is still one of the most centralised in the world? And what do we need to do differently in the future to create a country that’s not just more connected, but also more competitive, resilient and sustainable? In this episode the Chair of the Catapult, Prof. Greg Clark speaks to Lord Kerslake, Chair of the Peabody Group and formerly the Permanent Secretary at the Department for Communities and Local Government, Head of the Civil Service and Chief Executive of Sheffield City Council and the London Borough of Hounslow. Lord Kerslake has worked at the highest levels of local and national government and in 2015 was made a cross-bench Peer in the House of Lords.  Music on this episode is by Blue Dot Sessions and Phill Ward Music (www.phillward.com)  Show notes: Find out more about the UK2070 Commission, an independent inquiry into city and regional inequalities, as well as policy and spatial issues related to the UK’s long-term development. You can also learn more about Laptops For Kids which Lord Kerslake mentions – the charity that facilitates the donation and distribution of used digital devices, enabling children from disadvantaged backgrounds to have access to the technology they need to participate in remote learning. Follow the show! Don’t forget to subscribe to the show on iTunes, Spotify and Google Podcasts. Please also take a moment to write a review and rate us so that more people can hear about the podcast and what we do at Connected Places Catapult. 

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Connected Places is a podcast about the future of our towns, cities and transport systems. In each episode we speak to thought leaders, senior industry figures, innovators and businesses from around the world about the new technologies that are shaping the places of tomorrow. Connected Places is brought to you by the Connected Places Catapult - the UK's innovation accelerator for cities, transport and places. We help to connect businesses and public sector leaders to cutting-edge research and new technologies that can spark innovation and grow new markets. For more information about the work the Catapult is doing to support businesses large and small, visit our website and subscribe to our newsletter at: www.cp.catapult.org.uk