A Mug's Game – Andy Burnham and Immigration

A Greater Manchester perspective?  So out of the blue, as part of the campaign to be elected Mayor of Greater Manchester, comes a report that ‘The free movement of people within the European Union has made British streets unsafe’. And that “The status quo – full free movement – was defeated at the ballot box and therefore not an option. We need to make the argument for an immigration system that allows for greater control, reduce the numbers coming here, but does so in a fair way.” The UKIP policy on immigration bases itself on fairness [1] . But these quotes are not from UKIP, they are from the Labour Party candidate Andy Burnham...

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Green Mayoral candidate calls for immediate action on Homelessness

Shelter Request Green candidate for Mayor of Greater Manchester Deyika Nzeribe [1] called on local councils to act on homelessness immediately. Last week saw the deaths of two homeless men when an abandoned building was destroyed in a fire [2] as well as a group of young people placed under an eviction notice in order to remove them from the empty public-owned building they were occupying [3]. Speaking specifically about the situation in Manchester, Deyika said “This is both is both a tragic and outrageous situation the Council has created. Whilst it’s understood that government policy over the past few years has dramatically increased...

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Fracking no part of Energy Future

Green bloc at United against Fracking rally Speech at United Against Fracking rally Saturday 12th November 2016 Hello people and welcome to Manchester.  My name is Deyika Nzeribe, the Green Party candidate for Mayor of Greater Manchester. Thanks - to everyone who has come to speak loud and clear against fracking. Thanks to the amazing organisers who have pulled together this event, they're brilliant. Thanks also to the media who are going to report the enormity of what’s at stake here. And thanks in advance that they are going to give the fracking industry the robust scrutiny it deserves. There are many great speakers...

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In the Running

"Devolution"[1] for Greater Manchester has many things wrong with it. There is a lack of transparency no democratic mandate from the people an almost sole focus on 'growth' a lack of practical focus on social issues a lack of focus on the climate change and environmental issues Green Candidates So why run to be the Green candidate for Mayor? Because its an opportunity to put all of these issues on the agenda for Greater Manchester. The role of the Mayor should be a campaigning one for the people. In addition, 35% of constituencies in Greater Manchester are amongst the most deprived in the North West. [2] (Deprived areas...

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Corbyn, Trump and the Prince from Across the Sea

Your Choice Currently the country is in political, financial and social turmoil. With the lack of a clear leadership voice for the country, its difficult to see a way forward. The upper class leaders of the Leave Europe campaign have fled and the two largest parties are embroiled in internal power struggles. For us, the massive surge of support for Jeremy Corbyn has been a concern, so far left unanswered by the Greens.  Can it be argued that joining Labour in support of Corbyn is potentially a dangerous thing? Here is a scenario that starts with suggesting that Jeremy Corbyn and Donald Trump find themselves in exactly the same position. Putting...

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Brexit, Racism and Accountability

Brexit - Voting to Leave Brexit surprises - the ‘Out’ result itself, who voted out and the ensuing political turmoil. Generally, the media has characterised those who voted out as the disenfranchised white working class, and given the spread of the ‘Out’ vote, this applies to most of the country. The rise in attacks and abuse against Asians, Blacks and Europeans has been swift. Many column inches have been devoted to ‘Shock’, pointing to the effects of austerity and the words of grey, white people in small towns. But England and its people hasn't substantially changed over the years and certainly not since the EU referendum vote....

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Comment: Europe - A Mistimed Referendum

This post is my personal view. Galloway and Farage “…unless I have blood as the Law says all Narnia will be overturned and perish in fire and water.” So demanded the White Queen at a pivotal point in her conflict with Aslan in the children’s book ‘The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe’. It does not seem so different from how both the Bremain and Brexit campaigns have presented their doom-ladened cases. In the last days of the campaign, things have become calmer. Its taken blood to make it so. Both sides of this campaign have been, lets say, ‘misleading’.   Brexit quite simply have often lied and have been quite open about...

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Hulme pub 'The Junction' at Crossroads

After years of rumours about Hulme's 'The Junction' pub [1], news has arrived that it has been sold by owners, Hydes brewery [2]. Pub advocacy group CAMRA [3] reports that it has been sold to a local property developer, separately identified as PortfolioUK [4]. Built in the Victorian era, The Junction is an iconic Hulme landmark [5] and one of the last traditional community pubs in the area. Its said that there was once an underground tunnel between the The Junction and the nearby Hippodrome [6] so that performers staying at (there was once accommodation on the long ago removed third floor) could get direct access to the theatre. [7] Local...

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Comment: Race to the Top? Not In Manchester

April sees Bury City Council elect its new council leader Rishi Shori. He is the first Black Minority Ethnic (BME) leader [1] in the history of Greater Manchester. With this in mind, it’s worth looking at the current composition of Manchester City Council. Manchester City Council has 96 councillors [2]. All 96 are currently members of the Labour Party [3]. Labour has historically enjoyed solid support from the ethnic minority population of the city. Lets look at more numbers. The population of Manchester is approximately 500000 [4] The ethnic minority population is roughly 30 percent of this [5] Of the councils 96 representatives,...

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