“They don’t care about us” as fears grew over the “quieter” Birkenhead

In the run-up to the 2019 general election, Boris Johnson and his Conservative party promised to “grow” areas across the UK to balance the disparity between London and the South East and the rest of the UK.

Five years and three Prime Ministers later, we asked the people of Birkenhead if they felt any level rise in their town.

Rather than a story of rising levels, it appears that Birkenhead has been and continues to be in a state of decline. The idea that the city’s best days are behind him was always present in our conversations. Nowhere is this more evident than around the Pyramid Mall.

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In the shopping center we met Oscar Wood from Birkenhead who told us that the town has seen a rapid decline in recent years.

The 18-year-old said: “I grew up here, I came here so much and there would be so many shops and places to go. I left and came back at 16 and half the places had closed, it’s much quieter, just less life. I don’t think the Tories care about anyone in the north, they don’t care about us.”

While in the Pyramid shopping center we also spoke to George McKevitt, 83, from Bromborough. George was also concerned about the number of closed shops in the area.

He said: “Stores are closing because everyone is moving to Amazon.”

George also commented on the lack of “levelling” in the country: “There is a gap between the South and the North. Up north, it’s cheaper for your pint, fish and chips and rent, but that’s about it.”

As well as the Pyramid shopping centre, nearby Birkenhead Market is also struggling.

I spoke to several suppliers in the market who all agreed that the certainty of the level rise project had not reached the Wirral.

One seller, Mark Jones from Pensby, said: “The leveling up doesn’t seem to have affected me in Birkenhead Market. Nothing has changed for me personally; other people and other things may have changed, but I don’t see it.”

PJ, who runs a magic shop in Birkenhead Square, told us: “Half the market has gone in the last five years, the place is just going down, more people are going to Liverpool to shop because there’s nothing left in Birkenhead. .”

Perhaps the most moving conversation I had in Birkenhead was with two women, who wished to remain anonymous. One of the ladies told us, “People in the north get up and go to work just like in the south, we are people too.”

The other lady talked about the depressing cycle of parents having to work more and more hours just to pay the bills, but as a result have little time to spend with their children.

When asked if the area benefited from the leveling program, the woman told us “Just look around, everyone’s gone.”

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