I was down in the City last weekend, taking in the sights.
It's always a bustling place, full of energy and with lots going on. This is what you would want from a capital city. But the difference between London and the rest of Britain is quite noticeable.
The train journey down to Euston passed through Preston and Wigan. Warrington and round the Midlands. Compared to the cranes set around London, building more prestige apartments, the northern cities were dotted with demolition sites and derelict factories. Empty shops and boarded up buildings. It wasn't all gloomy - there were new developments and signs of regeneration but these were the exceptions rather than the norm.
It's not the fault of locals: it's not like these Northerners have all been lazy or lacking ideas. There are hot-spots in Manchester that prove the existence of regional creativity and entrepreneurial spirit. No, it's all about money. Consumer spending is part of it but there is also the additional investment funding that comes when an area is seen as promising - likely to give a good return. Building new property in London is expensive but it's virtually guaranteed to give a good return. Similar spending in Bolton is less certain to make a profit. There is a negative spiral of low investment and low spending.
On top of this is historical de-industrialisation. During the 1980s there was a collapse in traditional industries that supported these towns. As the Thatcher government attempted to wring inflation out of the economy they crippled manufacturing firms. There has also been a shift in manufacturing to lower cost economies as part of the globalisation process.
But there are also more recent forces at work. Post financial-crisis austerity policies of the coalition and Conservative governments have reduced spending on public services, a big part of economies of many Northern English cities. This has hit London as well but the capital has a secret weapon - a way of cushioning the blow: it is home to many of the world's biggest banks. The banks that were given billions after the financial crash then further funds via quantitive easing. There's been a flood of money into the banking sector since 2008.
So London has been propped up on benefits - government and Bank of England hand-outs. Money that the rest of the country is paying for, and it really shows.