Jim McMahon OBE MP

One ticket around Greater Manchester!

A major step forward for public transport in Greater Manchester!

From today, you can travel on any bus or tram with just one ticket – thanks to the Bee Network’s new integrated tap-and-go system. This means daily and weekly fare caps across services, making travel simpler, cheaper, and more convenient for people in Oldham West, Chadderton, and Royton.

Better connectivity – making it easier to access jobs, services, and opportunities.

More sustainable travel – cutting congestion and pollution by getting more people onto public transport.

A fairer system – public control of buses, capped fares, and investment in local services.

We have come a long way since the Bee Network was first announced: the rollout of buses under public control, single fair-cap kept at £2, OurPass for 16-18 year-olds, meeting clean air targets without a charging zone, and nationally legislating for public ownership of rail.

But there’s more to do – bringing commuter rail into the Bee Network, ending the postcode lottery of services, and securing millions more in bus funding. We are working to make further improvements: commuter rail services (including at Mills Hill and Moston) coming under local control in the Bee Network over the next few years; a Buses Bill to end the postcode lottery of services; and £66 million more for coming for Greater Manchester buses.

Today’s milestone is just the start of delivering a London-style transport system for Greater Manchester!

Working Together to Prevent Knife Crime

Today in Parliament, the growing concern over knife crime was discussed, and it’s clear that Greater Manchester is no exception, with a 94.6% rise in knife crime over the past decade.

Knife crime devastates communities, tears apart families and leaves our young people vulnerable to exploitation, violence, and, in the worst cases, death. No one should live in fear of violence, which is why we remain committed to making Oldham a safe place for all.

This is an issue we have continuously campaigned about locally, pushing for increased neighbourhood services, community intervention, and youth support – all of which have been reduced under the Tories. Alongside local police and community leaders, my focus has been on both responding to knife crime and preventing it in the first instance. This has led us to support initiatives such as targeted stop-and-search, mentoring and educational opportunities, and long-term solutions to root causes of poverty, inequality and lack of opportunity.

The page is turning; we finally have a government committed to addressing the systemic issues that drive knife crime, establishing vital support and prioritising prevention. Current government bills like the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill and the Crime and Policing Bill are steps in the right direction through measures that include increasing neighbourhood policing, introducing mental health support in every school, and establishing violence reduction units.

In particular, the Government’s Serious Violence Strategy focuses on early intervention, education, and support for families to prevent young people from becoming involved in violence. The strategy also emphasises collaboration between the police, local authorities, schools, and charities so that our community can tailor initiatives specifically to what our young people are facing.

We must be honest that there is a crisis facing our young people that has been going on for far too long. These government initiatives will help us to go further at a community level, push for early prevention and provide better outcomes for our young people.

Above all, we want to send a clear message that knife crime will not be tolerated in Oldham and through collaboration with the government and the community, we will combat this issue.

Together, we must act now for the future of our young people.

Tougher Action Needed on Tool Theft

Shockingly, 1 in 10 tradespeople can expect to have their tools stolen this year, with many of them already having been through this three times or more.

𝙇𝙖𝙨𝙩 𝙮𝙚𝙖𝙧 𝙥𝙤𝙡𝙞𝙘𝙚 𝙛𝙤𝙪𝙣𝙙 £𝟖𝟎,𝟎𝟎𝟎 𝙤𝙛 𝙨𝙩𝙤𝙡𝙚𝙣 𝙩𝙤𝙤𝙡𝙨 𝙛𝙤𝙡𝙡𝙤𝙬𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙖 𝙧𝙖𝙞𝙙 𝙖𝙩 𝙖𝙣 𝙖𝙙𝙙𝙧𝙚𝙨𝙨 𝙞𝙣 𝙊𝙡𝙙𝙝𝙖𝙢, 𝙨𝙝𝙤𝙬𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙞𝙣𝙙𝙪𝙨𝙩𝙧𝙞𝙖𝙡 𝙨𝙘𝙖𝙡𝙚 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙤𝙧𝙜𝙖𝙣𝙞𝙨𝙚𝙙 𝙣𝙖𝙩𝙪𝙧𝙚 𝙤𝙛 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙘𝙧𝙞𝙢𝙚.

Over 12,600 people in Oldham are employed in skilled trades such as electricians, plumbers, carpenters, bricklayers, and construction workers. This sector is a vital component of Oldham’s economy, contributing significantly to both employment and the development of our community’s infrastructure.

On average, stolen tools cost around £2,730, van repairs cost around £1,320, and finally a cost of £1,900 through lost work and business disruption. Tool theft clearly creates a huge cost burden for tradespeople as well as disrupting vital community work.

𝘼𝙨𝙞𝙙𝙚 𝙛𝙧𝙤𝙢 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙘𝙤𝙨𝙩, 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙚 𝙞𝙨 𝙖 𝙥𝙧𝙞𝙣𝙘𝙞𝙥𝙡𝙚 𝙬𝙝𝙞𝙘𝙝 𝙜𝙤𝙚𝙨 𝙖𝙩 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙝𝙚𝙖𝙧𝙩 𝙤𝙛 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙘𝙧𝙞𝙢𝙚; 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙨 𝙠𝙣𝙤𝙬𝙞𝙣𝙜𝙡𝙮 𝙩𝙖𝙠𝙚 𝙖𝙬𝙖𝙮 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙖𝙗𝙞𝙡𝙞𝙩𝙮 𝙤𝙛 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙫𝙞𝙘𝙩𝙞𝙢 𝙩𝙤 𝙚𝙖𝙧𝙣 𝙖 𝙡𝙞𝙫𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙥𝙧𝙤𝙫𝙞𝙙𝙚 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙞𝙧 𝙛𝙖𝙢𝙞𝙡𝙮.

Currently, those convicted of tool theft would only serve a community order opposed to a sentence that considers the impact tool theft has on the loss of trade. In April, Amanda Martin MP’s Ten Minute Rule Bill will return to Parliament raising the case for tougher sentencing and shining a light on the crime that so many tradespeople routinely face.

We need tougher action on tool theft and justice for tradespeople so they have the assurance they can get on with the job.

Dangerous Driving

The incident last week on Block Lane in Chadderton, where a driver crashed into several parked cars before flipping his vehicle, is deeply concerning. Fortunately, no serious injuries were reported, but this serves as another stark reminder of the dangers posed by reckless driving in our community. We also saw a reckless crash on Peel Street into the bollards last week.

Since 2010, 69 people have tragically lost their lives on Oldham’s roads, with 755 others suffering serious injuries, many as a result of dangerous driving. In the past five years, we have also seen the heart-breaking deaths of four young people under the age of 16, killed by reckless drivers.

These statistics are simply unacceptable, and immediate action is required to make our roads safer.

We’ve long campaigned for stronger road safety measures across our borough, working closely with local residents, community groups, and the authorities to raise awareness of dangerous driving and to call for better enforcement of road safety laws.

Labour have also worked for improved infrastructure and road design to reduce speeding and make our streets safer for everyone.

We will continue to press for action from both the local authorities and Greater Manchester Police to tackle dangerous driving head-on. We need better road safety measures, stronger enforcement, and more accountability for those who put lives at risk.

I urge everyone in our community to report any reckless driving they witness to the authorities.

Supporting young people to succeed

Today, I am proud to stand in full support of the Children’s Schools and Wellbeing Bill, a vital piece of legislation that aims to improve the educational experience and overall wellbeing of our children across the country, regardless of background or circumstance.

This Bill recognises the crucial role that schools play in shaping the future of our young people, by ensuring that schools are not only places of learning, but also places of care.

We are addressing today’s climate head on; the pressures of social media, difficulties at home, and the rise in mental health problems. We have set out clear steps to improve access to mental health services in schools, provide professional development for teachers to better support students, and give parents the resources they need to support their children’s education and wellbeing at home.

This will have positive effects for the children across our borough as it will address socio-economic factors that are currently driving gaps in educational attainment. For instance, the current percentage of children in Oldham who achieve a ‘Good Level of Development’ in the Early Years Foundation Stage is around 60-65%, slightly behind the national average of around 70%.

I believe this is due to our education system being focused too heavily on academic outcomes without giving enough attention to overall development and support of our children.

I am committed to changing that and giving our young people the best environment to succeed, regardless of the challenges they face outside the classroom. I believe by addressing external factors, providing specialist care and pushing for equal opportunities, we will drive up development and close educational attainment gaps.

I am proud to vote for this Bill as it is time we put the wellbeing of our young people at the forefront of our educational priorities.

Launch of SportsTown at Boundary Park

Today, the Oldham SportsTown project officially launches. As part of the Community Regeneration Partnership, the SportsTown masterplan represents a huge investment into local sports and educational pathways centred at Boundary Park.

The £70 million masterplan, which covers a frootprint the size of the Etihad Stadium, will be a multi-sports centre of excellence from grassroots sport for all the way up to elite performance Further & Higher Education sports academies.

The existing community facilities will undertake transformational growth through the new 3,000 seat stand, university centre, wellness suite, 4,000 seat multi-sport arena, outdoor 3G sports domes, and upgraded grass pitches.

Around 25,000 residents from the northern Greater Manchester will use the SportsTown facilities once per week, with 60% being Oldham residents and the majority being young people; using a non-traditional university strategy based on community family engagement through education and sport.

At the general election, I prioritised community ownership for local people in Oldham West, Chadderton and Royton. The work we have done locally to secure Boundary Park as an Asset of Community Value, has created a foundation to build upon, resulting in stable ownership for Latics, a ground sharing deal between them and Oldham RLFC to secure the future of the ground, and now the launch of SportsTown in and around the venue.

The ownership of the club by the Rothwell family and the energy and dedication they have injected into the project, aided faithfully by the leadership of CEO Darren Royle has breathed new life into the club and stadium.

In addition to this fantastic scheme there are also projects to support grassroots and community sports facilities which I am determined to see get the support and funding they need. The need and demand in the community is clear, and in both AVRO FC at Limeside and West End pitches at Coldhurst there is huge opportunity we have got to get behind.

There’s a bright future ahead!

Happy St. Patrick’s Day!

Happy St. Patrick’s Day to the Irish community across Oldham West, Chadderton and Royton and the 70 million people around the world of Irish descent.

𝙼𝚊𝚢 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚛𝚘𝚊𝚍 𝚛𝚒𝚜𝚎 𝚝𝚘 𝚖𝚎𝚎𝚝 𝚢𝚘𝚞, 𝚖𝚊𝚢 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚠𝚒𝚗𝚍 𝚋𝚎 𝚊𝚕𝚠𝚊𝚢𝚜 𝚊𝚝 𝚢𝚘𝚞𝚛 𝚋𝚊𝚌𝚔.

Costco Broadway Bottlenecks

Like most people I think Costco has been a great addition to Chadderton, it saves a visit to Trafford for members and its success is clear from the vast number of visitors, especially around paydays (mid and end of month) and special holidays.

But there’s no doubt that with that comes long queues which can block junctions and create tailbacks as far as the already clogged Semple Way. Add on top of that the rush to save on topping up has been expanded to the Costco Petrol filling station, and adding to queuing times including for its customers.

𝗡𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝗛𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘄𝗮𝘆𝘀

Broadway is part of the national highway network, like the motorway, and is maintained by National Highways rather than Oldham Council. It can make matters more complicated when trying to get improvements moved on.

At long last good news is on the way with a scheme to improve capacity and safety at junction 21 of the M60/A663 Broadway, which is expected to help reduce congestion and make the Costco/Long Lane junction easier to navigate. In addition to improving safety for drivers, the plans will also enhance walking and cycling infrastructure in the area.

The proposals include increasing capacity at the junction, which will allow traffic signals to be adjusted to provide more green time for vehicles to exit the Costco junction. This should help ease the queuing problem.

𝗡𝗲𝘅𝘁 𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗽𝘀

Although the funding for the project is still to be confirmed, the scheme is part of the government’s Road Investment Strategy 3 (RIS3), with a delivery window expected between 2026 and 2031. In the meantime, we have made representations to the Chadderton Town Board to use available government funding to explore solutions to ease the current issues.

Discussions with Costco are also ongoing, with National Highways pushing them to take responsibility for mitigating the impact of their petrol filling station on the surrounding road network.

I think most people would agree that the long term answer is a second exit so those leaving the petrol station and looking to exit onto Broadway can do so without tailing through the car park and then being forced to a single exit point.

Updates will continue to be provided as further details emerge on the scheme’s progress.