Greater Manchester Spatial Framework initial view

The 2016 proposal saw the north of the borough taking the strain of greenbelt development and lead to a significant overdevelopment. Under the proposals important greenbelt land which provides an important buffer between towns would have been removed, particularly between Royton and Rochdale and Royton and Oldham (towards St James’). There is little doubt thatContinue reading “Greater Manchester Spatial Framework initial view”

New Year, new transport costs

It’s that time of year when the Christmas decorations come down and it suddenly its back to work for millions of commuters across the country. It’s also the time of year when the travel price increases really hit the headlines, across buses, trains and trams commuters will be paying more to get to and fromContinue reading “New Year, new transport costs”

Annie Comes Home!

After two years of fundraising Oldham received its stunning Annie Kenney statue in Parliament Square, with the main speech by Maxine Peake. Inspiring performances and personal stories, and stand out Choir, at Gallery Oldham provided a perfect start to the day before hundreds gathering to march behind Oldham Youth Brass Band to the Old TownContinue reading “Annie Comes Home!”

Oldham Post Office Closure

Along with other local MPs, Debbie Abrahams and Angela Rayner, as well as the Communication Workers Union, I have called on Post Office Limited to halt their planned closure of the branch in Oldham Town Centre. Post Office Limited, owned by the Department for Business, Skills and Industrial Strategy, plan to close the branch andContinue reading “Oldham Post Office Closure”

What is Labour Conference and what was my role there?

Long read: Conference diary Labour Members met in Liverpool now a decade on from the financial crash which opened the door for brutal cuts to public services, and people in Oldham will feel the real impact of that more than most. We also met at a time when big issues on jobs, the economy, BrexitContinue reading “What is Labour Conference and what was my role there?”

The housing crisis is a national scandal

This article originally appeared on Progress Online on 24th September 2018 Theresa May has orchestrated some excellent PR this month. In a last minute attempt to paper over some quite significant gaps in her government’s domestic agenda ahead of Tory conference, a number of half-baked housing policies have flown off the shelf. Most notably cameContinue reading “The housing crisis is a national scandal”

The Tories have no plan to grow the economies and cultures of our towns and cities

This article orginally appeared in the New Statesman on 24th Septembeer 2018 Most people agree that the vote for Brexit was in part driven by the economic and political disenfranchisement of many communities across the country, which for too long have been overlooked by Westminster. That’s particularly true of small towns in the Midlands, NorthContinue reading “The Tories have no plan to grow the economies and cultures of our towns and cities”