Fortress London: Why we need to save the country from its capital

A vividly written and timely polemic tackling the burning injustices shaping British society today. ‘Intelligently written and powerfully argued.’ Paul Mason ‘Witty, scathing, and entertaining.’ Danny Dorling Journalist Sam Bright is a Northerner living in London. He is just one of the millions of people clinging on to the coattails of the capital, sucked in by the prospect of opportunities that the rest of the United Kingdom does not enjoy. Our capital is a vast melting pot of languages, cultures, and ideas, and rightly celebrated for it. For many, though, there is no other option. The only place to access the opportunities this country offers is London. Banking, law, politics, advertising, architecture, the arts and the media are all concentrated here. It is almost impossible to reach the heights of any profession without joining the grey hoards queuing for the next tube. As the economic, political, and cultural epicentre of the country, Fortress London acts more like a renaissance city-state like Florence or Venice than the capital of a modern nation-state. And the gluttony of London, compared to the malnourishment of our regions, dramatically affects life chances in Britain. Fortress London argues that to address Britain’s manifold problems, we need first to end the hegemony of its capital. Enriched by a vast array of interviews and statistics, it will examine how our individual destinies, from childhood to death, are determined by the disproportionate power of London. It will explain why regional inequality has fallen off the Left’s radar, even as the Right pays lip service to it, and it will draw on international comparisons to show where we have gone wrong and, crucially, how we can fix it. Sam Bright’s clear-eyed intervention will convince you that regional inequality is the problem — and that now is the time for change. Featuring exclusive interviews with: Andy Burnham, Lisa Nandy, Steve Rotheram, Aditya Chakrabortty, David Blunkett, Jess Phillips, Andrew Adonis and more… In Fortress London, Sam Bright masterfully delves into the science of social disparity and the geography of opportunity, painting a vivid picture of a city that is both a beacon of hope and a fortress of inequality. The book is a top pick for anyone interested in public affairs, policy planning, and the human cost of regional inequality. For fans of James O'Brien (How Not To Be Wrong), Chris Bryant (Code of Conduct), Ian Dunt (How To Be A Liberal), Grace Blakeley (The Corona Crash), and Rory Stewart (The Places In Between). HarperCollins 2022