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Council leader calls for ‘compassion and solidarity’ after protests in Manchester

"There is no place for hate in our city."

Emily Sergeant Emily Sergeant - 6th August 2024

The leader of Manchester City Council has called for “compassion and solidarity” after protests across the country.

After a weekend that saw widespread far-right protests and counter demonstrations in towns and cities throughout the UK – predominantly here in the north, and in Greater Manchester – following the devastating killing of three young girls and the injuring of several others during a knife attack in the Merseyside seaside town of Southport at the end of last month, the leader of Manchester City Council insists disorder “will not be tolerated in our streets”.

Cllr Bev Craig says there is “no place for hate” in Manchester.

Hundreds of people have been detained and arrested by police nationwide over last few days following the riots – including 19 people in Manchester city centre, according to GMP.

Prime Minister Keir Starmer called an emergency COBRA meeting in response to the ongoing unrest, and said his Government “utterly condemns the far-right thuggery” displayed, adding that “those who participated in this violence will face the full force of the law.”

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And now, Manchester’s Council leader has had her say.

Addressing the Manchester public in a statement, and calling for “compassion and solidarity” moving forwards, Cllr Bev Craig wrote: “We know that our communities will be feeling understandably anxious and uneasy, but we would like to reassure our residents that we will not tolerate disorder in our streets.   

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“Manchester’s diversity is our strength, and it is now more important than ever that we support one another with compassion, understanding and solidarity.

Council leader Bev Craig has called for ‘compassion and solidarity’ after protests in Manchester this past weekend / Credit: GMP

“I am deeply conscious that some of our communities, especially minority communities, are anxious about discrimination, abuse, anti-Muslim sentiment and racism, much of which is playing out on social media, alongside misinformation and other forms of hate.

“Everyone has the right to feel safe in their community, and we will continue to work with colleagues at GMP to monitor local concerns and make sure that Manchester remains a welcoming and safe place.

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“As such, there will be an increased police presence in our neighbourhoods, and we want to be clear that officers are there primarily to provide visibility and reassurance.”

Looking ahead to how the region plans to manage the situation going forward, Cllr Craid added: “We fully support GMP in taking robust action against anyone who is intent on bringing violence to our city.

“Swift action is needed to bring people to justice, and we would also like to thank Council staff, officers at GMP, and other partners who helped to keep Manchester safe this weekend under very challenging circumstances.”

Cllr Craig closed out her statement insisting that “there is no justification for criminal behaviour”.

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“The actions of the perpetrators undermine everything that Manchester stands for,” she added. “We are proud to be a vibrant, tolerant, and accepting place – and we know there is more that unites us than divides us.

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“Now is the time we come together to show what this means.”

Featured Image – GMP

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Manchester named one of Europe’s ‘best’ cities alongside 17 other British places

Emily Sergeant Emily Sergeant

Manchester has been named one of the ‘best’ cities in Europe for 2025, according to a new ranking.

You may remember that our city – and wider Greater Manchester borough – has often featured on various round-up lists over the years, with it ranking on everything from being named one of the best places in the UK to buy your first home, and the best place to raise a family, right through to being one of the most creative cities.

But it arguably doesn’t get much better than a title like this.

For a long time now, the city has been cementing itself as a tourist hotspot, with new hotels popping up left, right, and centre, and integrated transport systems being introduced to make it easier to get around.

And it looks like all that has paid off, as Manchester has now been named one of the best cities in the whole of Europe for 2025, thanks to a new ranking by Resonance Co.

Manchester skyline
Manchester has been named one of Europe’s ‘best’ cities / Credit: Josh Taylor | Chris Curry (via Unsplash)

This year, the global placemaking company’s research encompassed 128 cities across Europe with metropolitan area populations of 500,000 or more, and evaluated each of them based on 30 performance indicators and perception metrics derived from surveys of more than 7,500 respondents across 10 European countries.

Once each of these performance indictors had been evaluated, every city was given its own ‘Place Power Score’ to determine its ranking.

A city’s ‘Place Power Score’ examines three core dimensions – liveability, which takes into account things like housing affordability, healthcare access, green space, air quality, and cycling infrastructure; loveability, which encompasses culture, nightlife, culinary scenes, and more; and prosperity, which includes business environment, talent density, GDP per capita, airport connectivity, and more.

While Manchester may have missed out on both the top 10 and top 20, considering it’s a top 100 list, our city has claimed the respectable 36th spot, beating out mega cities such as Venice, Nice, Athens, and loads more.

In fact, 18 British cities are included in the top 100.

Our city has ranked alongside 17 other British places / Credit: Mangopear Creative

Explaining why Manchester has been ranked, Resonance Co said in its city description: “You’ll be hearing a lot more about Manchester this decade, as the historic engine of English industry shifts into high gear across both culture and development.

“While the UNESCO City of Literature continues to shape global music – with 2024’s opening of the 23,500-seat Co-op Live arena, and a festival lineup that includes Beyond the Music and Worldwide Music Expo – Greater Manchester is also writing a new chapter in urban reinvention.

“A newly centralised ‘single pipeline for growth’ coordinates £1 billion of planned annual investment across six targeted Growth Locations, aiming to deliver tens of thousands of homes and jobs at a pace unmatched in the UK since the 2012 London Olympics. Among the boldest is the Western Gateway, anchored by the regeneration of Old Trafford around Manchester United’s stadium, projected to generate over 90,000 jobs.

“The Central Growth Cluster includes innovation districts like Crescent Salford and Victoria North. These ambitions build on an £80-billion economy that’s grown 50% since 2000 and now leads the nation in FDI outside London.

“Add a mature devolved governance model and transformative transit investments – like bringing commuter rail into the Bee Network – and the city’s Top 10-ranked airport and 15th-most Instagram Hashtags start making sense.”

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Which city took the title of the best city in Europe though? Well unfortunately, we have to give it to the southerners on this one, as London took the top spot.

But at least it’s an impressive win for the UK, if nothing else.

Featured Image – Mylo Kaye (via Unsplash)

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Criminals who skip court sentencing hearings will now be ‘forced’ to attend or face more prison time

Emily Sergeant Emily Sergeant

Judges will now be able to hand down prison punishments for ‘cowardly’ criminals who refuse to attend their sentencing hearing.

It’s been a long time coming… but for the first time ever, victims are set to be ‘better protected than ever before’ thanks to new measures across the UK justice system following the introduction of the Victims and Courts Bill yesterday (7 May).

Not only will they be forced to attend court, but with the understanding that those facing long sentences or Whole Life Orders may not necessarily be deterred solely by additional time behind bars, the Government has decided to give judges extra power to impose a range of prison sanctions on top of additional years on their sentence.

Government ministers said this is to ensure that ‘heinous criminals’ who refuse to attend can be ‘appropriately’ punished. 

The new Bill also extends the eligibility to all cases in the Crown Court too, which means that all offenders who attempt to ‘evade justice’ could be subject to tough sanctions, as well as up to two more years behind bars.

On top of this, offenders who have been ordered to attend by a judge, but whose disruptive and disrespectful behaviour results in their removal from the courtroom, will also be punishable by the same means.

To ensure the Government and other agencies are ‘held to account’ in delivering justice for victims, the Bill also bolsters the role of the Victims’ Commissioner, so under the new legislation, the Commissioner will be able to play a bigger role in individual cases that raise systemic issues.

The aim of this measure is to ensure that ‘lessons are learned’ to benefit other victims or witnesses in the future.

“This Bill will deliver long overdue reforms to ensure victims see justice done and are given the vital support they need as they rebuild their lives,” commented Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice, Shabana Mahmood.

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“There is still more work to do as we fix a justice system that was left on the brink of collapse, but this Bill is a step towards rebuilding victims’ confidence through our Plan for Change.”

Featured Image – Merseyside Police | Cheshire Police

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