Covid-19 has highlighted just how centralised we are. There are suggestions that a white paper on devolution will be published soon. Now is the time for some radical thinking on how England can be democratised. 

This paper argues for ‘progressive regionalism’ as a solution to the ‘English Problem’ – what to do with a highly centralised, outdated and undemocratic model of political governance which has presided over an increasing gulf between London and the South with the rest of England. And which is only likely to get worse with the economic effects of Covid-19 (as well as Brexit) starting to make themselves felt.