Cumbria has always done things a bit differently from the rest of the country.
We have our own way of wrestling. We like our sausages fat and in one long piece. We have our own language. Unlike most of the rest of the country, we say good morning to strangers, even to give directions to lost caravanners or hikers.

We even have our own currency. So why not our own taxes?

Northern Powerhouse minister Jake Berry has suggested that a new department for the North to drive forward the region’s transport, education and devolution schemes could be financed by local taxes.

He said: “We should not close our minds to the localisation of taxation. A big complaint is that money is being invested more in London and the south than in the north. 

“Taxes raised in the north could be spent in the north. And we should not close our minds to varying income tax at a local level.

“Many people across the north of England voted to leave the EU. There was a feeling of disempowerment and a lack of control of their lives. Northerners who voted for Brexit don’t want those powers taken from the EU and stop at Whitehall.

“Each region across the north should have its own bespoke devolution deal. An economic boom here would help drive this country’s economy forward post-Brexit. We need the powers to be able to do that.”

His comments to The Sunday Times  were backed by Ken Royall, founder and director of the Lakes Currency Project.

The scheme provides pound notes that locals and tourists can use in independent shops in the national park to boost trade for local business.

Launched last year, it has been a major success.

Over 350 shops and stores have signed up to the scheme and now towns outside the National Park want to join in.

Mr Royall has been approached by businesses in the north and west of the county, but the scheme can’t be expanded fast enough.

He said the currency had captured the imagination of locals – and maybe a local tax could have the same effect.

“There is certainly a great desire and argument for having more financial autonomy and control,” he ventured.

“The local currency is an attempt for the local economy to look at itself and have a sense of autonomy, of looking at its own business and having control.

“Having local taxes is how you control government spending, I think it is a worthwhile thing to do.

“Autonomy is all about taking back control , I’m not advocating Brexit is the way to do that, but that is the thought behind Brexit.”

Mr Kendall said while it was still early days for the currency, it was already making people think more about where and how they spend their money and more of Cumbria wants to get involved.

“People have to have trust that it will work. It takes time for it to become established and it is proving that when people start to use it, that trust comes automatically,” he added.

“We have had huge interest from businesses in Penrith, Cockermouth, Ulverston, Whitehaven and Workington, but we can’t service it.

“We are hoping to expand the currency during the course of this year, but at the moment, we are concentrating on the Lake District and Kendal.

“There is a sense of local pride and identity in the money and that could spill over into taxes.

“The currency shows that Cumbria has a sense of innovations and isn’t just a sleepy backwater.”

Professor Frank Peck, from the Centre for Regional and Economic Development at the University of Cumbria said: “The general principle of devolution of power should be encouraged in my view.

“There was a debate about all this when regional assemblies were discussed which raised issues about the cost of government.

“What we have at the moment is a patchwork. Some areas have more devolved powers and others have not.

“We have different areas going at a different pace with different areas of responsibility and it is not very well co-ordinated.”

While Manchester and Liverpool metropolitan areas have seen their influence and power grow through devolution and the appointment of mayors, other areas such as Leeds and less populace regions across the north have been left behind.

“There is an outstanding issue about how devolved powers are co-ordinated and there is a question as to how to improve that co-ordination,” added the professor.

The localised taxation could be along the lines of that used in Scotland where it offers a lower ‘starter’ income tax rate, but Stewart Young, the leader of Cumbria County Council, dismissed the idea.

He said: “I don’t know whether to laugh or cry. We used to have regional offices in Manchester where civil servants representing all the main government departments could be contacted. There was all this infrastructure and the government demolished it all.

“I’m in favour of a regional strategy, but the government won’t let go.

“They talk about devolution, but even in Scotland, they only have the power to alter taxes by a couple of pence either way.

“We get micro-managed to within an inch of our lives. We have ministers in Whitehall telling us what days our bins should be emptied.

“There is absolutely no way that the Treasury and  other ministers would allow this.” 

Henri Murison, director of the Northern Powerhouse Partnership, said a first step would be to allow the north region to keep the money generated by train users to improve the rail system.

“More power must come back here to the North including extensive further devolution in wider areas to invest in key areas such as infrastructure, education, skills and productivity,” he explained.

“Whether we prioritise varying income tax or greater wider fiscal devolution is open to debate - one thing we have to ensure is that under any of the possible Brexit scenarios the Shared Prosperity Fund is provided directly to the North, fully replacing vital European funding, as advocated by us and many others across the North.

“Brexit has paralysed the government to the extent that crucial policy recommendations are not being acted upon. Interventions such as these, building on the proposals we have put forward with the support of our business and civic leaders, are a welcome first step to putting the Northern Powerhouse agenda back on ministerial in-trays.”