Traditional media is in crisis. A shrinking number of corporations control more and more of our media, as they try to survive the Digital Revolution destroying the advertising-based business model they relied on. Journalists are laid off and titles closed, as the media corporations protect their bottom line and shareholder pay-outs. This relentless attrition of […]
Who is representing you on Greater Manchester’s local councils?
Three weeks ago, Greater Manchester elected one-third of its councillors to local government. Seats were contested in all ten boroughs, but with a turnout of just 31% across the region, which is typical for local elections, few of us actually had a say in who represents us on the local council. Bolton went to the […]
European elections: find out who your local candidates are and where you can vote for them
The unexpected and ill prepared for European elections are fast approaching on Thursday 23 May. Theresa May repeatedly insisted that we would not take part in these elections because we would have left the European Union by now. But here we are still in the EU, Brexit has not yet occurred, and the European elections […]
Podcast Review of One at HOME Manchester
“Nasi is on a ladder. Heʼs not coming down any time soon”. As we file into the theatre Nasi is there in front of us, standing high up on the very tall ladder. His demeanor is casual and relaxed but unconvincing. This tense sight amplified by the sense that we had intruded midway through a […]
It’s time for Manchester Museum to decolonise
Imagine that news emerged of 18,000 undiscovered historical artefacts relating to Manchester were illegally taken out the country by a museum in North Africa. We can only think what the response in the city would be in such circumstances. Political leaders would demand the return of the stolen goods, public protests would break out and […]
Transgender people wait years for help in clinic system at ‘breaking point’
Imagine not feeling comfortable in your own skin for as long as you can remember. The toll on your mental and physical health of a life peppered with bullying and snide remarks due to you not fitting in to the gender stereotypes. You reach a decision to transition, and are filled with the hope of […]
Food Poverty Action Plan aims to tackle hidden crisis in GM
The latest estimates are that 620,000 people in Greater Manchester are living in poverty, and struggle to put food on the table. Of those, around 200,000 are children experiencing food poverty. £30 billion per year has been cut from welfare budgets since 2010. By 2020, Local councils will have lost 60% of central government funding […]
Boycott Puma to stop its sponsorship of the Israeli apartheid regime
Global sportswear manufacturer Puma is involved in violations of international law and human rights, due to its sponsorship of the Israeli Football Association (IFA). Puma is the main sponsor of the IFA, which includes teams in Israel’s illegal settlements on occupied Palestinian land. Manchester Palestine Action demonstrated last Saturday at the Puma department of Sports […]
Tenant rights campaigners victorious over government plans to scrap ‘no-fault evictions’
A coalition of housing activists are celebrating a campaign victory as the government announced its plans yesterday to abolish “no-fault evictions” under Section 21 of the 1988 Housing Act and introduce open-ended tenancies for private renters in England. Currently, Section 21 allows landlords to evict tenants without giving a reason, after a fixed term tenancy […]
HSBC take flak for funding massive overseas coal projects, undermining Paris Agreement on CO2
Highstreet bank HSBC’s activities funding new CO2 emitting fossil fuel projects are under attack by campaigners across Greater Manchester, who are demanding the bank make a “Big Shift” to funding renewable energy Christian Aid’s on-going climate campaign (#BigShift) is now focusing on HSBC because of their continued funding of massive new coal projects in Bangladesh, […]