A Labour MP from Oldham has criticised the ‘Northern Powerhouse’ name after thousands of northerners are still suffering power outages.
It’s now been a week since Storm Arwen hit the UK and left thousands of homes in the north of England and widespread parts of Scotland without any electricity during one of the coldest months of the year, and this is what prompted Jim McMahon – Labour MP for Oldham West & Royton, and Shadow Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs – to take to Twitter to address the situation.
The apparent lack of swift action taken by the government resolve the ongoing issues following the storm has drawn criticism online, particularly in relation to the ‘North / South divide’.
Jim McMahon was a prominent voice in the critiquing, as he took to social media yesterday to point out the irony in the ‘Northern Powerhouse’ name, when thousands of residents across several northern regions are still suffering power outages.
“Northern Powerhouse? Thousands still haven’t got power,” he said in his now-viral tweet.
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“It’s now nearly a full week since Storm Arwen hit leaving many vulnerable and isolated waiting in desperate conditions.
“The government have not treated this as the emergency it is.”
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Northern Powerhouse? Thousands still haven’t got power!
It’s now nearly a full week since Storm Arwen hit leaving many vulnerable and isolated waiting in desperate conditions.
While The Northern Powerhouse may not directly relate to the matter at hand, it was the fitting, yet contradictory, name of the government’s plan that cleverly-aided Mr McMahon’s argument.
Mr McMahon’s tweet has received both support and criticism online.
One Twitter user responded: “I don’t live up north, I have no connection with the north and I know absolutely nobody up north but I know if this situation was happening across Hampshire, Berkshire and Buckinghamshire a national emergency would have been called.
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“I don’t know much but I know that.”
On the contrary, another urged Mr McMahon to: “Do something constructive by calling for the nationalisation of our utilities.”
In the government’s own words, the Northern Powerhouse is the “vision for a super-connected, globally-competitive northern economy with a flourishing private sector, a highly-skilled population, and world-renowned civic and business leadership”, and is a proposal based on the benefits of agglomeration and aims to reposition the British economy away from London and the South East.
The “proposal to boost economic growth in the North of England” was launched by the 2010–15 coalition government, and then in 2015-2016 by the Conservative government.
The “Core Cities” are Manchester, Hull, Liverpool, Leeds, Sheffield, and Newcastle.
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It’s now been a week since Storm Arwen hit the UK and left thousands of homes in the north of England without electricity / Credit: Wikimedia Commons
Storm Arwen arrived last Friday.
The storm – which prompted the Met Office to issue what they described as a “rare red weather warning” – brought with it gale force winds and heavy rain, which eventually turned into snow blizzards that left people stranded in their homes and, in some rural areas of the country, snowed-in completely.
In England, a major incident was declared in County Durham in the North East, with residents and some households moved into temporary accommodation as a result.
And in Scotland, it was also confirmed yesterday that about 120 military personnel have been drafted in to help those still suffering power outages, with their focus being on conducting welfare in the communities still badly affected.
More snow is currently forecast for across the UK next week, according to the Met Office.
30 years ago, the IRA detonated a 1,500kg lorry bomb on Corporation Street in the heart of Manchester – here’s the story
Georgina Pellant
Today marks three whole decades since an explosion from the inside of a lorry parked on Corporation Street shattered windows and destroyed buildings across the city centre.
Causing an evisceration that stretched for miles, when the 1,500 kilogram IRA bomb went off in 1996, it was the biggest detonation in Great Britain since the Second World War.
Following the explosion, the city fell silent – leaving rack, rubble and ruin in its wake. Famously, one red post box was left standing – today fitted with a memorial plaque in remembrance of the tragedy.
It seems scary to think that back then, most people could only stand there, watch on and worry.
The bomb caused an estimated £700 million worth of damage to Manchester’s infrastructure and economy, and over a quarter of a century later, locals still tell the stories of where they were when it went off – and of the devastation it left behind.
Notably, one resident of the Cromford Court maisonettes on top of the Arndale – a 77-year-old RAF veteran suffering from the flu – didn’t even bother to get up when the telephone warning to evacuate hit, considering himself to have survived much worse feats during his time in military service.
Having been a rear gunner in a Lancaster in the war, he reportedly told police and authorities “he was buggered if he was going to let a small bomb affect him.”
In subsequent years, Danny O’Neill has become a part of an urban legend surrounding the bomb as his staggering story has been told time and time again.
Around 90 minutes prior to the detonation, the Provisional Irish Republican Army had telephoned in warnings – meaning that around 75,000 people were able to be evacuated from the area before the bomb went off from the back of a van.
However, the bomb squad were unable to defuse it in time, leading to over 200 injuries from people still left in the area.
Thankfully, despite those injuries, there were no fatalities, and many of those reported traumas came from the shattering of thousands of windows and other damage to buildings in which unsuspecting people were getting on with their days.
Several buildings near the explosion were damaged beyond repair and had to be demolished, while many more were closed for months for structural repairs, and this prompted the biggest regeneration of Manchester city centre ever – something that is still continuing to this day, arguably at a more rapid rate than ever.
The city lay dormant for days after the explosion, as people came to terms with what had happened and kept their distance. Many moved out of the centre for a period of time, while many more simply decided not to visit for fear of another incident.
It was a desolate place, eerily quiet, and in need of some serious TLC.
According to Home Office statistics, an estimated 400 businesses within half a mile (0.8 km) of the 1996 blast were affected, 40% of which did not recover.
Credit: Manchester Libraries
Market Street – near the explosion and at that time the second-busiest shopping street in the UK – was considered by some a “fearful” place, and one that was to be “avoided like the plague”.
The prospect of pulling Manchester’s bustling city centre out of its darkest depression was not casually approached by those in charge.
It was acknowledged as a mammoth task from the get-go, but Greater Manchester has never let anything get in its way. Despite how steep the hill is that we’re standing at the base of, we always manage to reach the peak, ready to go again.
Manchester City Council green-light new venue at Medlock Square, with Mamma Mia! The Party to open the immersive space
Danny Jones
The smash-hit ‘Mamma Mia: The Party’ is set to land in Manchester next year as the maiden event of another brand-new space set to open as part of the upcoming Medlock Square development.
Etihad Campus has seen a lot of moving pieces over the past few years, be it the building of Co-op Live, the ongoing expansion of Man City’s home ground, the soon-to-launch hotel attached to the stadium and now Medlock.
But those in control of the land are content with stopping there; this looks to be just the start of a whole new evolution for the East Manchester area, with an as yet untitled new immersive arts, experience and events venue also set to join the new slate of projects.
You see another glimpse of the purpose-built mini arena, of sorts, down below.
With plans having now been approved by the City Council, the ‘immersive’ space will be situated between the Etihad, Co-op Live and Medlock Square itself, holding up to 600 guests per performance.
Currently set to open in late 2027, following the rest of the square’s launch window being fully rolled out, we still don’t know the name of this next addition, but the structure itself will dovetail with the surrounding buildings and areas as part of seasonal activations, live shows and sports screenings, as well as pop-ups, brand collaborations and more.
Looping back, the interactive, multimedia extravaganza that is ‘Mamma Mia! The Party’ will finally be making its Manc debut as part of the 10th anniversary of the all-singing, all-dancing and even all-dining in-demand production.
As per an official press release from the Medlock Square media team, the show will combine “live music, theatre, food and storytelling” and “offer visitors an unforgettable night out.”
The original UK production at The O2 in London has now surpassed more than 1,500 performances, with a total of 700k guests attending these shows in 110 countries across the globe. Safe to say it’s rather popular.
As for Medlock Square and the surrounding Etihad Campus, Manchester City supporters have also been given another look at the soon-to-open, immersive hotel tie-in experience.
With a skywalk, rooftop bar, a new MCFC shop and various other bits set to spill out onto Medlock Square, it all feels like a period of wholesale changes over in the blue half of the city – especially with the football club bidding farewell to their manager Pep Guardiola after more than a decade.
Following the new and improved North Stand being named after him in the first of many tributes, the City Football Group (CFG) are also set to commission a statue in his honour over the coming months.
Meanwhile, Medlock Square is also due to open later this year, although an official completion date has not been confirmed.
You can stay up to date with all the latest on Mamma Mia! The Part’s Manchester shows right HERE.
Not forgetting a brand-new women’s football facility, too, there is so much stuff going on over at the Etihad that it can be hard to keep track, but here’s the latest look at some of the rooms set to feature in the hotel of the same name.
Emily Sergeant -
3rd December 2021 
