JP Spencer
@jpspencer.bsky.social
Economist. Author at Future North writing about the North of England (link below). Director of Devolution Policy, Labour Together.
Posts about policy, politics and the Pennines (and beyond).
📍 West Yorkshire.
🧭 futurenorth.substack.com
Posts about policy, politics and the Pennines (and beyond).
📍 West Yorkshire.
🧭 futurenorth.substack.com
Pinned
I’d planned to post today about West Yorkshire’s economy. But this has been hastily rewritten following the tram delay news!
What follows is a short thread on both. How has West Yorkshire been growing and what could be done to speed up the tram?
🧵
1/8
What follows is a short thread on both. How has West Yorkshire been growing and what could be done to speed up the tram?
🧵
1/8
Reposted by JP Spencer
Look ma, we're in the news! I worked in arts education at the time and had some contact via that and the long-gone Design Centre, with the vision at the heart of this. I always felt it was a vision - away from 'Tuscan' ideals, that the ideas that lay within this formed the basis of a future... 1/3
Sometimes people ask me - where do you think is doing some really interesting local development?
Often I respond Barnsley.
Here’s why!
www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cvgrnkwjvlgo.amp
Often I respond Barnsley.
Here’s why!
www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cvgrnkwjvlgo.amp
How a Tuscan vision took Barnsley back from the brink of disaster - BBC News
The once-struggling mining town is now rivalling the historic city of York in visitor numbers.
www.bbc.co.uk
January 7, 2026 at 8:06 PM
Look ma, we're in the news! I worked in arts education at the time and had some contact via that and the long-gone Design Centre, with the vision at the heart of this. I always felt it was a vision - away from 'Tuscan' ideals, that the ideas that lay within this formed the basis of a future... 1/3
Reposted by JP Spencer
“The Huddersfield Open Market is not so grand a site, nor a plan, as Halifax’s Piece Hall – but the concept is clearly sound, the council is trying to do everything right, and they’re still getting the Nimby blowback as if they’d suggested bulldozering the whole thing.”
capx.co/nimby-watch-...
capx.co/nimby-watch-...
READ MORE
Nimbys across Britain are working against the restoration of Huddersfield's open market
capx.co
January 6, 2026 at 4:49 PM
“The Huddersfield Open Market is not so grand a site, nor a plan, as Halifax’s Piece Hall – but the concept is clearly sound, the council is trying to do everything right, and they’re still getting the Nimby blowback as if they’d suggested bulldozering the whole thing.”
capx.co/nimby-watch-...
capx.co/nimby-watch-...
Calder Valley from the site of a potential Roman Fort near Halifax
January 4, 2026 at 2:45 PM
Calder Valley from the site of a potential Roman Fort near Halifax
Reposted by JP Spencer
"Welcome to Decline" -- still one of my favourite graphs from last year. In the late 1970s, Britain's economic fate very clearly split in two. How much you blame Thatcher will depend on your politics, but her leadership is useful to understand the timing. tomforth.co.uk/welcometodec...
January 2, 2026 at 6:15 PM
"Welcome to Decline" -- still one of my favourite graphs from last year. In the late 1970s, Britain's economic fate very clearly split in two. How much you blame Thatcher will depend on your politics, but her leadership is useful to understand the timing. tomforth.co.uk/welcometodec...
Reposted by JP Spencer
FTSE 100 at a record high 10,000 points today!
Impressive!
Accounting for inflation it's the highest since 2018, ish. And possibly heading levels not seen since the Global Financial Crisis.
Impressive!
Accounting for inflation it's the highest since 2018, ish. And possibly heading levels not seen since the Global Financial Crisis.
January 2, 2026 at 11:00 AM
FTSE 100 at a record high 10,000 points today!
Impressive!
Accounting for inflation it's the highest since 2018, ish. And possibly heading levels not seen since the Global Financial Crisis.
Impressive!
Accounting for inflation it's the highest since 2018, ish. And possibly heading levels not seen since the Global Financial Crisis.
Inspired by Barnsley’s claim to
Tuscan hill town status.
Marsden.
Tuscan hill town status.
Marsden.
January 2, 2026 at 10:05 AM
Inspired by Barnsley’s claim to
Tuscan hill town status.
Marsden.
Tuscan hill town status.
Marsden.
Sunset in the Pennines.
January 1, 2026 at 4:16 PM
Sunset in the Pennines.
Happy New Year to all!
If you want to start off as you mean to go on - thinking about the West Yorkshire tram and economy - then read on.
I wrote this on the day the tram delay announcement was made and hope some of the ideas are taken forward in 2026.
futurenorth.substack.com/p/whats-happ...
If you want to start off as you mean to go on - thinking about the West Yorkshire tram and economy - then read on.
I wrote this on the day the tram delay announcement was made and hope some of the ideas are taken forward in 2026.
futurenorth.substack.com/p/whats-happ...
Trams and growth in West Yorkshire
Growth in West Yorkshire - plus what should happen next following the tram delay?
futurenorth.substack.com
January 1, 2026 at 3:26 PM
Happy New Year to all!
If you want to start off as you mean to go on - thinking about the West Yorkshire tram and economy - then read on.
I wrote this on the day the tram delay announcement was made and hope some of the ideas are taken forward in 2026.
futurenorth.substack.com/p/whats-happ...
If you want to start off as you mean to go on - thinking about the West Yorkshire tram and economy - then read on.
I wrote this on the day the tram delay announcement was made and hope some of the ideas are taken forward in 2026.
futurenorth.substack.com/p/whats-happ...
Reposted by JP Spencer
Answers to the nine most common questions I get about the (now delayed) Leeds tram. tomforth.co.uk/tramquestions/
Tram questions.
Answers to the nine most common questions I've had about the Leeds tram proposals.
tomforth.co.uk
December 31, 2025 at 6:58 PM
Answers to the nine most common questions I get about the (now delayed) Leeds tram. tomforth.co.uk/tramquestions/
Reposted by JP Spencer
I grew up near Barnsley. We still laugh about the Tuscan hill town stuff to this day.
Chuffed for Barnsley though.
Chuffed for Barnsley though.
Sometimes people ask me - where do you think is doing some really interesting local development?
Often I respond Barnsley.
Here’s why!
www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cvgrnkwjvlgo.amp
Often I respond Barnsley.
Here’s why!
www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cvgrnkwjvlgo.amp
How a Tuscan vision took Barnsley back from the brink of disaster - BBC News
The once-struggling mining town is now rivalling the historic city of York in visitor numbers.
www.bbc.co.uk
December 30, 2025 at 10:35 AM
I grew up near Barnsley. We still laugh about the Tuscan hill town stuff to this day.
Chuffed for Barnsley though.
Chuffed for Barnsley though.
Reposted by JP Spencer
Sometimes people ask me - where do you think is doing some really interesting local development?
Often I respond Barnsley.
Here’s why!
www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cvgrnkwjvlgo.amp
Often I respond Barnsley.
Here’s why!
www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cvgrnkwjvlgo.amp
How a Tuscan vision took Barnsley back from the brink of disaster - BBC News
The once-struggling mining town is now rivalling the historic city of York in visitor numbers.
www.bbc.co.uk
December 29, 2025 at 10:59 AM
Sometimes people ask me - where do you think is doing some really interesting local development?
Often I respond Barnsley.
Here’s why!
www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cvgrnkwjvlgo.amp
Often I respond Barnsley.
Here’s why!
www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cvgrnkwjvlgo.amp
Sometimes people ask me - where do you think is doing some really interesting local development?
Often I respond Barnsley.
Here’s why!
www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cvgrnkwjvlgo.amp
Often I respond Barnsley.
Here’s why!
www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cvgrnkwjvlgo.amp
How a Tuscan vision took Barnsley back from the brink of disaster - BBC News
The once-struggling mining town is now rivalling the historic city of York in visitor numbers.
www.bbc.co.uk
December 29, 2025 at 10:59 AM
Sometimes people ask me - where do you think is doing some really interesting local development?
Often I respond Barnsley.
Here’s why!
www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cvgrnkwjvlgo.amp
Often I respond Barnsley.
Here’s why!
www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cvgrnkwjvlgo.amp
Reposted by JP Spencer
When the Manchester Guardian calls, the people of the North heed the call. And if those people are me, we inject Manchester Liberalism, even from across the Pennines, right back in to the paper of Northern record. Get your fill. www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
Britain’s cities are desperate for better transport. Why is Westminster derailing our plans in Leeds? | Thomas Forth
A long-promised tram network has been pushed back to the late 2030s – unless we build local, northern growth will be snuffed out, says Thomas Forth, co-founder of tech firm The Data City
www.theguardian.com
December 23, 2025 at 4:40 PM
When the Manchester Guardian calls, the people of the North heed the call. And if those people are me, we inject Manchester Liberalism, even from across the Pennines, right back in to the paper of Northern record. Get your fill. www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
Lovely day for a winter walk
December 23, 2025 at 9:21 AM
Lovely day for a winter walk
Reposted by JP Spencer
Welcome To Decline. I constructed a historical dataset of economic growth in "The North" and "The South" of Britain and used it to show that Thatcher DID put The South on a course for convergence with the USA. 👍 And put The North on the opposite path. 👎 tomforth.co.uk/welcometodec...
Welcome to Decline.
The North has been declining since Thatcher. The South since Blair. It's good to be back together again I suppose.
tomforth.co.uk
December 21, 2025 at 11:42 PM
Welcome To Decline. I constructed a historical dataset of economic growth in "The North" and "The South" of Britain and used it to show that Thatcher DID put The South on a course for convergence with the USA. 👍 And put The North on the opposite path. 👎 tomforth.co.uk/welcometodec...
Reposted by JP Spencer
At least when Keith Joseph didn't believe in the railways he had the excuse that we had had 40 years of decline under British Rail. That Rishi Sunak basically didn't believe in them because he was doing 1980s cosplay is comfortably the worst thing he did as prime minister.
Canceling the northern leg of HS2 was an act of insane self-harm
Industry insiders are concerned that fewer, shorter non-tilting trains are on order for HS2 — and that journey times will return to those of the 1990s
December 20, 2025 at 12:28 PM
At least when Keith Joseph didn't believe in the railways he had the excuse that we had had 40 years of decline under British Rail. That Rishi Sunak basically didn't believe in them because he was doing 1980s cosplay is comfortably the worst thing he did as prime minister.
Reposted by JP Spencer
If this is the case, ministers could jointly make a policy decision that this is a tram - and thus help speed up its delivery again.
There is no law that I am aware of which says alternative modes of transport must be considered.
www.yorkshirepost.co.uk/news/politic...
There is no law that I am aware of which says alternative modes of transport must be considered.
www.yorkshirepost.co.uk/news/politic...
Civil servants could turn mayor's West Yorkshire tram plan into bus network
Civil servants could overrule mayor Tracy Brabin and turn the proposed West Yorkshire mass transit system into a bus network, The Yorkshire Post understands.
www.yorkshirepost.co.uk
December 20, 2025 at 4:02 PM
If this is the case, ministers could jointly make a policy decision that this is a tram - and thus help speed up its delivery again.
There is no law that I am aware of which says alternative modes of transport must be considered.
www.yorkshirepost.co.uk/news/politic...
There is no law that I am aware of which says alternative modes of transport must be considered.
www.yorkshirepost.co.uk/news/politic...
Reposted by JP Spencer
The delay to the Leeds / WY tram is disappointing.
Because any delay makes the project likely riskier and potentially more expensive.
So we need to speed it up again. I’ve suggested ways below to do just that.
Let’s get the tram back on track!
⬇️
Because any delay makes the project likely riskier and potentially more expensive.
So we need to speed it up again. I’ve suggested ways below to do just that.
Let’s get the tram back on track!
⬇️
I’d planned to post today about West Yorkshire’s economy. But this has been hastily rewritten following the tram delay news!
What follows is a short thread on both. How has West Yorkshire been growing and what could be done to speed up the tram?
🧵
1/8
What follows is a short thread on both. How has West Yorkshire been growing and what could be done to speed up the tram?
🧵
1/8
December 20, 2025 at 9:27 AM
The delay to the Leeds / WY tram is disappointing.
Because any delay makes the project likely riskier and potentially more expensive.
So we need to speed it up again. I’ve suggested ways below to do just that.
Let’s get the tram back on track!
⬇️
Because any delay makes the project likely riskier and potentially more expensive.
So we need to speed it up again. I’ve suggested ways below to do just that.
Let’s get the tram back on track!
⬇️
If this is the case, ministers could jointly make a policy decision that this is a tram - and thus help speed up its delivery again.
There is no law that I am aware of which says alternative modes of transport must be considered.
www.yorkshirepost.co.uk/news/politic...
There is no law that I am aware of which says alternative modes of transport must be considered.
www.yorkshirepost.co.uk/news/politic...
Civil servants could turn mayor's West Yorkshire tram plan into bus network
Civil servants could overrule mayor Tracy Brabin and turn the proposed West Yorkshire mass transit system into a bus network, The Yorkshire Post understands.
www.yorkshirepost.co.uk
December 20, 2025 at 4:02 PM
If this is the case, ministers could jointly make a policy decision that this is a tram - and thus help speed up its delivery again.
There is no law that I am aware of which says alternative modes of transport must be considered.
www.yorkshirepost.co.uk/news/politic...
There is no law that I am aware of which says alternative modes of transport must be considered.
www.yorkshirepost.co.uk/news/politic...
The delay to the Leeds / WY tram is disappointing.
Because any delay makes the project likely riskier and potentially more expensive.
So we need to speed it up again. I’ve suggested ways below to do just that.
Let’s get the tram back on track!
⬇️
Because any delay makes the project likely riskier and potentially more expensive.
So we need to speed it up again. I’ve suggested ways below to do just that.
Let’s get the tram back on track!
⬇️
I’d planned to post today about West Yorkshire’s economy. But this has been hastily rewritten following the tram delay news!
What follows is a short thread on both. How has West Yorkshire been growing and what could be done to speed up the tram?
🧵
1/8
What follows is a short thread on both. How has West Yorkshire been growing and what could be done to speed up the tram?
🧵
1/8
December 20, 2025 at 9:27 AM
The delay to the Leeds / WY tram is disappointing.
Because any delay makes the project likely riskier and potentially more expensive.
So we need to speed it up again. I’ve suggested ways below to do just that.
Let’s get the tram back on track!
⬇️
Because any delay makes the project likely riskier and potentially more expensive.
So we need to speed it up again. I’ve suggested ways below to do just that.
Let’s get the tram back on track!
⬇️
Reposted by JP Spencer
December 19, 2025 at 10:32 PM
Apparently this is mostly a Yorkshire thing.
What do you call the last Friday before Christmas?
Most Britons don't have a name for the term, but 7% call it "Mad Friday", with usage most common in...
Scottish Borders: 49%
South Yorkshire: 33%
West Yorkshire: 30%
Grampian: 29%
East Riding of Yorkshire: 27%
yougov.co.uk/society/arti...
Most Britons don't have a name for the term, but 7% call it "Mad Friday", with usage most common in...
Scottish Borders: 49%
South Yorkshire: 33%
West Yorkshire: 30%
Grampian: 29%
East Riding of Yorkshire: 27%
yougov.co.uk/society/arti...
December 18, 2025 at 7:05 PM
Apparently this is mostly a Yorkshire thing.
Reposted by JP Spencer
I’d planned to post today about West Yorkshire’s economy. But this has been hastily rewritten following the tram delay news!
What follows is a short thread on both. How has West Yorkshire been growing and what could be done to speed up the tram?
🧵
1/8
What follows is a short thread on both. How has West Yorkshire been growing and what could be done to speed up the tram?
🧵
1/8
December 18, 2025 at 10:23 AM
I’d planned to post today about West Yorkshire’s economy. But this has been hastily rewritten following the tram delay news!
What follows is a short thread on both. How has West Yorkshire been growing and what could be done to speed up the tram?
🧵
1/8
What follows is a short thread on both. How has West Yorkshire been growing and what could be done to speed up the tram?
🧵
1/8
Reposted by JP Spencer
Going by 2023 data, Leeds is now above the national level of productivity (even accounting for the noise in hours worked data). It would be the third big city to do so, after London and Bristol. So it has the potential to be quite a regional economic hub.
December 18, 2025 at 12:15 PM
Going by 2023 data, Leeds is now above the national level of productivity (even accounting for the noise in hours worked data). It would be the third big city to do so, after London and Bristol. So it has the potential to be quite a regional economic hub.
I’d planned to post today about West Yorkshire’s economy. But this has been hastily rewritten following the tram delay news!
What follows is a short thread on both. How has West Yorkshire been growing and what could be done to speed up the tram?
🧵
1/8
What follows is a short thread on both. How has West Yorkshire been growing and what could be done to speed up the tram?
🧵
1/8
December 18, 2025 at 10:23 AM
I’d planned to post today about West Yorkshire’s economy. But this has been hastily rewritten following the tram delay news!
What follows is a short thread on both. How has West Yorkshire been growing and what could be done to speed up the tram?
🧵
1/8
What follows is a short thread on both. How has West Yorkshire been growing and what could be done to speed up the tram?
🧵
1/8