Is it me or is the 'cheaper' bit just lazy economics? As a percentage of income, prices are possibly comparable. If they start tweaking the already southern biased wage structures, it will only result in more debt and hardship in the north won't it? A better system would be far the larger employers to clear out of London and the South, selling their land and relocating up north where labour is more plentiful and more reliable. In this modern age much can be done electronically, with just a token presence in the capital.
The other thing the policy implies is that the value of a job changes depending on where you are. Is a firemans job harder in London than it is in Hull? They seem to be saying people should be paid what someone decides they need, rather than what their input is worth. I wonder if they'd feel the same if similar logic was applied to tax avoiders and exiles?
"It's always been cheaper to live in Hull as the average wage is lower. People on good salaries can have a much higher standard of living than they would in other areas. The affluent area just to the West of the city boundary has one of the highest standard of living levels in the country. The fact that this area isn't within the city boundary, as similar areas are in most cities, is largely responsible for Hull's low ranking in the league tables." Think this sums it up well. Other than that it's a ****e, nothing story.
the problem is all down to far too many people live down there , there has to be an organised distribution of jobs - of every rung on the ladder .... London isnt the holy grail , its just the governments for the last 90 odd years have been lazy .
Surely the way to regenerate the north (run-down areas?) is to offer bigger wages. Likewise if wages were reduced in London then people would want to leave and businesses would move north. Make London less attractive and the deprived areas more attractive to residents/employers/investors etc. Or have I missed the point.
London by its nature has always been more expensive on the whole Hence why London wages are far greater. Yes a sausage roll is a sausage roll but its a given that you pay more in London on most things. When i worked in London and earned London wages I actually lived in Peterborough and caught the train. No way would i ever live in London for many reasons.
Have you ever seen the films Escape from New York and LA ? Well i would build a massive concrete wall around the M25 and make London a maximum security prison. Once you go in you dont ever leave. No guards - No rules. Only the strongest survive. Bring it on, imo.
Let the free market sort it out. Remove "London weighting" and these jobs in London won't pay, meaning that they will either move elsewhere or abroad. The fact that the taxpayer subsidises London public sector wages and benefits (housing benefit being a particular gripe of mine) is an outrage. Remove these crutches and you will see people decide whether to stay in London or not. The whole thing just needs the removal of government manipulation and it will sort itself out.
London weighting is an example of the free market. They couldn't fill the posts so they increased the wages.
