A joined-up “Northern Arc” spanning from the River Mersey to the Pennines could drive UK economic growth over the next decade, say Liverpool City Region Mayor Steve Rotheram and Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham.
Their vision—underpinned by a new Liverpool-Manchester railway—seeks to match the success of the Oxford-Cambridge Arc in attracting investment, fostering innovation and boosting productivity.
The Northern Arc already has two investment zones, a population of 5.4 million and produces an annual gross value added (GVA) of £150 billion plus £23.5 billion in exports. Advocates believe that a new Liverpool-Manchester railway would add £7 billion GVA to the UK economy, facilitate 300,000 new homes over 20 years, and create more than 40,000 high-quality jobs by 2050.
Burnham noted that combined city-region investment schemes—including Old Trafford’s sports-led regeneration and Greater Manchester’s Atom Valley—are set to benefit from joined-up planning, delivering more ambitious outcomes together than in isolation. He called the railway a “crucial missing link” in the UK’s infrastructure plan, arguing the North West’s untapped potential could match that of the Oxbridge corridor.
Rotheram emphasised that, in the Liverpool City Region alone, major projects like the £550 million Health Innovation Liverpool Campus and expanding Sci-Tech Daresbury are already powering growth in life sciences, advanced manufacturing and low-carbon technologies. Linking these hubs with Greater Manchester and beyond would transform the North West “into a global powerhouse,” he said.
The city-regions are collaborating with independent economists and local authorities to quantify the benefits of this proposed supercluster, building on the Oxford-Cambridge model. Greater Manchester’s ten-year plan aims to secure £1 billion of annual investment over the next decade. Meanwhile, Liverpool’s regeneration of Central Station, valued at £2.5 billion, could open new commercial possibilities, complemented by further housing and urban renewal spurred by Everton FC’s new stadium at Bramley Moore Dock.
Supporters argue that, with sufficient government backing, these developments could inject the North West with renewed dynamism, accelerate national growth, and help shift the UK’s economic centre of gravity away from the South.
