A think tank called Re:State has proposed opening a "No 10 North" office in Manchester, with around 300 staff recruited within 18 months from across Greater Manchester and the wider North of England, the BBC reported on 21 July 2026 (BBC News).

The report suggests moving teams from three government departments in London: the Treasury (which handles public spending), the Cabinet Office (which supports the prime minister and coordinates government), and the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG). All three are now led by senior ministers from the North of England (BBC News). Whitehall officials willing to move have been told they will be offered relocation packages, according to the BBC.

A significant number of staff are expected to come from Andy Burnham's former team at the Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA), the body that runs local services like transport and housing across the region. At least three senior GMCA figures have agreed to work at No 10 North. Some GMCA staff only found out their colleagues were involved after seeing them on television greeting the prime minister in Downing Street (BBC News).

The Re:State report suggests a senior minister should be responsible for No 10 North, supported by a junior minister based at the site. Burnham has not yet announced anything about these roles. Formal details are expected later in the House of Lords, the second chamber of Parliament where laws are reviewed, and as government appointments continue (BBC News).

Manchester City Council has already said it wants to work with the new operation. Its agenda for a meeting on Wednesday, 15 July 2026 included a motion to "work with the new No.10 North to make sure Manchester is an early adopter and beneficiary of these new policies" (Manchester City Council).

The relocation packages offered to Whitehall staff use an existing programme. The UK Government's Places for Growth (PfG) scheme allows departments to pay for civil servants to move out of London. But a government evaluation found these packages may have mixed results in actually persuading people to go (Gov.uk PfG evaluation). A separate programme called GovXchange, which helps civil servants switch jobs within government, does not offer relocation money and requires staff to already live close enough to commute (Civil Service Careers).

The broader context here is that the government has been trying to move civil service jobs out of London for years. The evidence on whether financial incentives actually work is mixed. Offering a package and getting someone to agree to move are two different things, and the evaluation suggests money alone does not always close the gap. Whether the No 10 North target of 300 staff in 18 months can be met is a question the evidence does not answer with confidence.

The GMCA angle adds another layer. Bringing in senior staff who understand how local government works could be valuable. But the fact that some colleagues found out about moves by watching television suggests the process has not been smoothly managed. For a project that wants to show a better way of doing government, that is an awkward early sign.

The involvement of three departments run by northern ministers also matters. The Treasury, Cabinet Office, and MHCLG are all at the heart of how decisions are made in Britain. If teams from all three are genuinely moved north rather than just used for show, it would shift where real policy work happens, not just create a symbolic northern office.

What is not yet clear is the formal paperwork. A senior minister and a junior minister for No 10 North would need the usual government reorganisation: legal orders, departmental changes, and new arrangements for who is accountable for public money. The expected announcements in the House of Lords and ongoing appointments suggest the plan is moving from idea to reality, but the formal steps have not been set out.

Manchester City Council's motion to be an "early adopter and beneficiary" shows local government is getting ready before those formal steps happen. The council's motion was dated six days before the BBC's report, suggesting the local political groundwork was already underway.