The councils is holding a consultation which could result in the implementation of a PSPO that adversely affect the homeless (see previous report here), including prohibitions on begging and sleeping in tents. The consultation is open to accept public statements until 8 April 2019: Recent proposals from Manchester City Council to bring in a […]
10 reasons why the bus companies’ partnership proposals will not ‘revolutionise’ our buses: we need regulation
Why do passengers and staff want a regulated network when £100 million has been offered for the alternative – partnerships? The fact that bus companies are suddenly offering a £100 million partnership package as an alternative to regulation shows just how great re-regulation of our buses is, and how much bus companies will do to […]
Rough sleeping increases 34% across Manchester in a year
Despite the well publicised efforts of the Greater Manchester mayor and Manchester City Council to reduce rough sleeping, the Manchester street count in 2018 has seen a 34% rise compared to 2017. The street count is a single night snapshot, carried out between 1 October and 30 November, of people sleeping rough in a local […]
Is Burnham’s A Bed Every Night scheme enough?
On the first day in his role as mayor of the Greater Manchester Combined Authority, Andy Burnham pledged 15% of his £110,00 salary (£16,500) to his newly created Mayor’s homelessness fund. He had soared to victory in the election with 63% of the vote on the back of a pledge to end rough sleeping in Greater […]
The Northern Gateway may be barred to many
Manchester City Council promises that 3,000 of the homes being developed in the enormous Northern Gateway development will be affordable housing. But close to 86,000 households in Greater Manchester are on the social housing waiting list, and homelessness is visibly increasing. Affordable housing is unaffordable to many in Manchester. So who is this development actually […]
Council in partnership with ‘most brutal police state in the Middle East’ says Amnesty International
Manchester City Council’s business partnership with the Royal Family of Abu Dhabi, in the United Arab Emirates, came under heavy criticism from activists and academics at a packed public meeting in the Central Hall on Oldham Street last Saturday. Describing the UAE as “the most brutal police state in the Middle East”, one speaker from […]
Bus franchising: a route to cleaner air for Greater Manchester
“Levels of air pollution in Greater Manchester(GM) are lethal and illegal”, states a new analysis by King’s College London, estimating that 1.6 million life years will be lost in GM in the next century due to poisonous air. The equivalent is reducing the life expectancy of all current residents by six months. A recent World […]
Trafford council spends £38m on investment properties: are they ‘gambling’ with public money?
An investigation into speculative property deals by local government, show the practice is increasing rapidly across England, as cash strapped councils try to survive austerity cuts. Vince Cable, leader of the Liberal democrats described these types of investments as “gambling” and that there was “a very high risk of bankrupting their local authorities”. Amongst the […]
What links ISIS, the al Nusra Front and genocide in Darfur to the Manchester property market?
The housing development boom in Manchester is gathering pace. Skyscrapers are rearing up across the city, with many more in the pipeline, while a housing crisis continues for many. An increasing number of these luxury high rise apartments are being snapped up by overseas companies, the ultimate owners of which are often shrouded in the […]
Greater Manchester’s social and solidarity economy revealed
Transform GM – an action research project looking to understand, map and promote ‘alternative’ economic activity in Greater Manchester (GM) – have just launched a new website mapping the social and solidarity economy (SSE). The SSE is made up of initiatives which prioritise other values over the economic bottom line and, unlike many charities, are […]