Leeds is the best paying place outside London overall apparently, better than Cambridge [1]. In all those locations the average salary overall is around the national average, so, again, claiming that 38k is "punitive" for in-demand software devs. is taking the p. especially when the article focusses on London.

[1] https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2023/nov/20/leeds-tops-l...