Greater Manchester residents are being asked to give their views on transferring control of former Clean Air Zone cameras to the police.
Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA) is seeking the approval of the local public to allow Greater Manchester Police (GMP) to have full control of the Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) that were installed for the now-defunct Clean Air Zone scheme in a bid to help ‘prevent and tackle’ crime.
GMCA believes that if the cameras are transferred over to police, this will help to keep communities safe and support victims going forward.
The six-week consultation was launched this past Friday (26 September) to seek views on changing the ‘main use’ of the cameras.
ANPR data can identify vehicles associated with crime and terrorism, and can ‘dramatically’ speed up investigations.
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We are seeking your views on plans to change the main use of the former Clean Air Zone ANPR cameras to tackling serious crime.
Giving them to Greater Manchester Police will speed up investigations and keep communities safe.
— Greater Manchester Combined Authority (@greatermcr) September 26, 2025
GMP can already access information and number plate images from the cameras at this time, but do need to request permission from Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM) beforehand – which it says ‘takes time’ and ’causes delays’.
Transferring ownership to GMP would allow camera data to go straight into local police systems, so that officers can act more quickly in real-time to help keep communities safe and solve serious crimes.
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The consultation has been launched after insights into a non-charging scheme was published by GMCA back in December 2023, and then it was confirmed back in January of this year that Greater Manchester’s plan for the introduction of a non-charging clean air zone had been backed by the Government.
It also comes after it was confirmed in July that the more than 1,300 Clean Air Zone signs installed across Greater Manchester at the start of the scheme would finally be taken down.
Mancs are being asked for their views on transferring CAZ cameras to police to ‘prevent and tackle’ crime / Credit: The Manc Group | Flickr
“We don’t have the same level of ANPR cover that other similar forces have, and this can hold us back in protecting the public,” explained Chief Superintendent Neil Jones, from GMP.
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“The data supplied from these ANPR cameras has already played a key role in GMP investigations ranging from missing persons to serious crimes such as sexual assault and murder, so by taking on ownership of the cameras and having a direct feed into our network, we’ll be able to act even more swiftly to protect people and communities and bring criminals to justice.”
GMP says it’s ‘committed’ to regularly reviewing the location of ANPR cameras to make sure their use remains justified.
The consultation will be running up until 11:59pm on Thursday 6 November, and residents are invited to submit any comments or questions before this time.
A decision on future arrangements is expected by the end of 2025, and you can find out more and fill out the survey here – https://gmconsult.org/ANPR
Featured Image – Pixnio
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Manchester Airport issues update for anyone flying today after hundreds of cancellations yesterday
Emily Sergeant
Manchester Airport has issued an update for anyone catching a flight today after hundreds of cancellations yesterday.
In case you hadn’t heard, hundreds of flights at several major UK airports – including Manchester Airport – were disrupted by a technical fault at air traffic control provider National Air Traffic Services (NATS) yesterday (8 September 2026), with the incident grounding planes and resulting in numerous cancellations.
According to Flightradar24, more than 1,000 flights were cancelled nationwide, and many passengers were told to expect disruption for the rest of the day.
One of the worst-affected airlines was said to be Ryanair, with around 65,000 passengers affected by the cancellations and delays.
Manchester Airport issued its first statement addressing the matter at 3:15pm yesterday, stating: “We are aware of an issue affecting NATS’ air traffic control service at UK airports, which may result in delays to some departing flights from Manchester Airport today.
“Passengers due to travel are advised to check the latest status of their flight with their airline. We will continue to monitor the situation and share further updates as more information becomes available.”
Now, although the issue has been resolved, Manchester Airport has issued further statements informing anyone travelling today what they can expect.
The airport started off by saying that it is ‘operating as normal’ today, but that passengers are advised to ‘check with their airline for the latest information’.
“A full flight schedule is expected to operate [today] but the airport may be busier due to rescheduled flights,” it added.
Passengers were then thanked for their ‘patience and understanding’ over the past 24 hours.
Featured Image – Ivan Shimko (via Unsplash)
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Hundreds of staff at four Greater Manchester hospitals to strike AGAIN next week
Emily Sergeant
Another round of strikes has been called at a handful of major Greater Manchester hospitals.
Amid ongoing disputes following the first set of strikes at the end of last month, it has now been announced that more than 350 Northern Care Alliance Foundation Trust (NCA) employees – including nurses, clinical support workers and housekeepers – who are members of the union UNISON will once again walk out for three days next week.
According to the union, the dispute centres on the NCA’s use of an outside agency called NHS Professionals (NHSP) to manage overtime.
When covering staff shortages, workers are entitled to time-and-a-half pay – however in some cases, staff earn less than they would on a normal shift, and some have even been missing out on more than £80 per shift, the union added.
Operating theatre staff were previously on picket lines in June, and although an option to resolve the row was initially tabled by NCA bosses, this has now fallen through.
Hundreds of staff at four of Greater Manchester’s hospitals are set to strike next week / Credit: Stephen Andrews (via Unsplash)
This means that staff at Salford Royal Hospital, Royal Oldham Hospital, Rochdale Infirmary, and Fairfield Hospital in Bury are walking out next week on Monday 14, Tuesday 15, and Thursday 17 September.
The union’s North West regional organiser, Kevin Dolan, said the trust had given ‘no indication’ that it’s willing to re-enter negotiations, adding that operating theatre services were ‘chronically under-staffed’ and staff were choosing to work extra shifts to cover shortages.
Ahead of the August strikes, the trust declared a critical incident to help it secure extra support and keep urgent surgery running, while also announcing that some procedures would have to be postponed.
Understandably, some disruption is expected at each of the hospitals on strike days.
But Gertie Nic Philib, who is the chief people and strategy officer at the Northern Care Alliance, said that the trust will do ‘everything we can to minimise the impact on patients’ and ‘maintain high standards of care and quality at all times.’
“We also have contingency plans in place for emergency situations,” they concluded.
Emily Sergeant -
29th September 2025 
