Following a decades-long effort to lay the foundations for economic dynamism, Greater Manchester has become the UK’s fastest-growing region. While the Manchester model cannot be precisely replicated at the national level, it does carry important lessons for outgoing Prime Minister Keir Starmer's likely successor.

CAMBRIDGE—Following Keir Starmer’s resignation as the United Kingdom’s prime minister, Andy Burnham, the popular Labour politician who just won a seat in parliament in a special election, appears more likely than ever to succeed him. Whether or not this happens, however, the political drama has focused attention on the UK’s second city, Manchester, where Burnham served as mayor for nearly a decade.