Published Wed, Aug 19, 2026 · 11:15 PM
[LONDON] Prime Minister Andy Burnham said he will shift responsibility for economic growth away from the UK Treasury and toward his new office in the north of England.
Burnham’s premiership, which began last month, has focused on giving more power to regions outside London, while the PM has tightened his grip on economic matters and moved some operations to a Manchester office called No. 10 North. Bloomberg reported last month that Burnham would give his own office more oversight of the economy rather than officially splitting up the Treasury as some Labour supporters and advisers had suggested.
The Treasury has “a job to be done around control of public finances,” Burnham told the Times newspaper, in an interview published late Tuesday. “It’s just, the dual job of growth and control of public finances sometimes clouds the growth mission.” He endorsed “No. 10 leading on that growth mission,” adding: “It is actually a huge transfer of power.”
John Healey, who replaced Rachel Reeves as Chancellor of the Exchequer when Burnham took office, fully supports the plans according to the report.
The move is a reversal of the approach under former prime minister Keir Starmer and Reeves, where Reeves and the Treasury were in charge of delivering economic growth. Reeves even restructured how the Treasury worked in pursuit of that end, such as by reducing the number of major fiscal events from two to one, to give officials more scope to focus on growing the economy.
Officials in the Treasury have been opposed to the transfer of power, according to people familiar with the matter. One of the people said the movement of Treasury staff is happening quickly and had been chaotic, speaking on condition of anonymity.
However, other officials pointed to the previous cooperation from Treasury staff when it opened its regional campus in Darlington and how other departments, such as the Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government, have also moved some roles to No. 10 North. They said very few Treasury officials have moved so far, and the roles affected were focused on areas such as local growth.
The Treasury did not immediately respond to a request for comment nor to queries about the number of officials moving to No. 10 North.
The Treasury had approximately 2,000 full-time staff across its offices in London, Darlington and Norwich in late 2024, according to the government. The Treasury’s Enterprise and Growth Unit – set up in 1997 under ex-chancellor Gordon Brown and which is listed as one of seven key pillars of the department – had about 220 full-time staff as of 2021, according to government data.
SEE ALSO
The plan to shift responsibility for economic growth from the Treasury to No. 10 was a point of contention within Burnham’s camp as he prepared for power. Some, such as former Bank of England chief economist Andy Haldane and Cabinet Office minister Louise Haigh, backed the idea of a standalone growth unit outside the Whitehall department. Others warned Burnham that the move would end up empowering the fiscal side of the Treasury and turn the so-called economic arm into a distant think tank, Bloomberg reported in June.
Healey’s first budget is due on Oct 28, when he must find a way of balancing the books while funding the new Labour administration’s spending ambitions. The government pledged a £442 million (US$599 million) package to tackle homelessness and people sleeping on the streets, Tuesday night, the latest policy announcement from Downing Street. Secretary of State for Housing Angela Rayner said it takes the total budget for homelessness to a record £4 billion.
“What we’re going to offer people is a place where they don’t have to be rough sleeping over the winter, by Christmas,” Rayner said on Sky News.
Rayner also insisted the transfer of power away from the Treasury doesn’t mean a demotion for Healey. “What we’re all saying, including the chancellor, is that we’re going to work with partners to ensure that they feel empowered in this process so they can drive their local economies,” Rayner said. BLOOMBERG
