New from the SMF: Seaside towns are falling further behind: average wages there are now £4,700 lower than the rest of the UK. In 32 coastal areas, the economy is still smaller than before the 2007 crisis. #coastal
A new report, "Falling off a cliff" by @ScottCorfe shows how coastal areas are falling further behind, in terms of wealth and health: people in coastal areas die earlier than those elsewhere. smf.co.uk/publications/f… 
In the early 2000s there was no significant life expectancy gap for men born in coastal communities. But those born today can now expect to live half a year less than those in other parts of the country.
Non-coastal women have a life-expectancy at birth of 83 years. For coastal community women, it is 82.6 years, a difference of almost five months. Life expectancy among coastal women is *falling*.
Brexit: of the 32 coastal areas that still haven't recovered from the 2007/8 crisis, 24 had a majority of Leave voters in 2016. Full list here:
A big issue for coastal communities is access to good jobs. Simply, most coastal people are too far away from good work. Some of that is because the jobs aren't there, some of it down to poor transport links.
Coastal people also have to go much further to access public services.
What can policymakers do to help? 1) More devolution: after the Northern Powerhouse, time for a Coastal Colossus? 2) Tax incentives for employers to set up by the sea 3) The HS2 review should have particular focus on coastal connections.
For the full report, see here: smf.co.uk/wp-content/upl…
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