Activists will congregate at Terminal 3 of Manchester Airport this Saturday, 4 August, as part of a day of protest against domestic flights between Manchester and London. Later on there will be an evening of party and music as part of the connected campaign to save the Hasty Lane cottages, threatened with demolition by the proposed expansion of the airport.
Competition for Peterloo memorial launched
A competition is under way to design a memorial in honour of those who lost their lives in the infamous Peterloo Massacre of 1819.
Minimum alcohol prices to be introduced in Manchester?
Plans by Manchester City Council’s to introduce a minimum price-per-unit for sales of alcohol have received a mixed reception. While supported by medical professionals, detractors claim that the proposals impinge on individual freedom and are regressive.
Picnic to reclaim Pride from Profiteers
Just minutes from the metal barriers of the Manchester Pride march, lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans and queer (LBGT/Q) activists will be offering a free and radical alternative this weekend writes Sian Bradley.
Exhibition review: ‘The Walls are Talking’
Currently on show at The Whitworth Art Gallery is an exhibition about a medium which is not usually at the centre of attention: wallpaper. But with themes as diverse as home, identity, war and gender – as well as one startling room covered entirely in ivy – the prints displayed are far from the image [...]
Manchester activists vent fury at Tomlinson decision
Manchester activists have voiced their outrage following the decision by the CPS not to prosecute over the death of Ian Tomlinson, with a University of Manchester lecturer going as far as to tell MULE that the affair means that the police are now “effectively immune from the law”.
Iranian family targeted as part of deportation pilot scheme
Manchester College student Farhad Vahidi and his family are facing deportation to Iran as of this Friday 20 August. It is believed the family are part of pilot scheme, on trial in the North West, to deport asylum-seeking families within a few weeks of failed asylum applications as an alternative to child detention.
Council Chief faces criticism over polling day fiasco
Liberal Democrat MP for Withington John Leech has criticised the decision by Manchester City Council returning officer Sir Howard Bernstein to donate a fifth of his bonus for the election to the Lord Mayor’s Charity.
Open your mind…
On Friday 13 August the recently revamped Earth Cafe will be hosting an exciting new event called OpenMind that fuses the devising process of theatre with light hearted discussion, providing an open space to share ideas.
Theatre: 24:7 festival round up
The 24:7 Theatre Festival runs until 1 August, showing an impressive range of fresh and young performances at the New Century House in Manchester. The plays are all short – catching the viewers’ attention for just an hour but making them want to come back for more. It’s the perfect way to spend the weekend, [...]
Exclusive interview with Councillor who sparked Leese controversy
On July 14, Councillor Mary Di Mauro sparked controversy in a City Council meeting by challenging Council Leader Richard Leese over comments he made after being arrested and cautioned for assaulting his teenage step-daughter. The incident enraged Labour councillors who demanded that Cllr Di Mauro apologise to “every victim of domestic abuse in the city” [...]
Teenager threatened with deportation after Home Office blunders
Sixteen year old Rabar Hamad has lived in Oldham for the last two years, having fled Iraq due to fears for his safety after his parents were killed in targeted explosion at their home in 2008. Upon arriving in the UK – hidden near the wheel arch of a truck – his age was incorrectly [...]
Reprieve for Manchester pedlar
Members of the pedlar community expressed relief and delight last Friday after a man was acquitted of illegal street trading at Manchester Crown Court. Critics feel the Council has been unfairly targeting the mobile vendors in recent months.
Theatre Festival: Contacting the World
Manchester’s Contact Theatre is hosting Contacting the World, an international festival of theatrical arts, until 26 July. Virginia Fernandez spoke to the theatre’s Artistic Director, Baba Israel, about the project.
More mesmerising investigative journalism from Manchester Pravda
Did everyone get their copy of Manchester People a few weeks back? You’d surely remember it, brave journalistic bastion of truth, reason and justice? “It’s barely legal propaganda masquerading as news, useful for little more than mopping up spills and starting fires,” you say?
Bulldozers arrive unannounced in Hulme
Chaos reigned in Hulme this morning as residents occupied Spider Park during demolition work ordered by the Council.
Britain’s Child Soldiers
Sixteen-year-olds are too young to drive a car, buy a drink in the pub, or place a bet in Britain. They are too young to have civil contracts enforced against them. They cannot vote. Yet they are old enough to join the army where, in the event of hostilities, they may become a legitimate [...]
More jobs expected to go at United Utilities as bosses up own bonuses
Bosses at water giant United Utilities (UU) have seen their bonus payments double the same year the company shed 500 jobs due to “financial pressures”. Meanwhile, as UU prepares the way for investment and lower prices in the North West demanded by industry regulator Ofwat,
That Sukks: Blacklisted company targets Manchester
The Tata Group, currently on the Burma “dirty list” for selling services and equipment to the Burmese government, has been using Manchester as a testing ground for the release of its latest product. Through subsidiary Tata Global Beverages and a front company, Clever Jelly, it has been marketing its Sukk drink to young people through [...]
Chat Moss climate activists found not guilty
Two environmental activists who chained themselves to machinery at a peat bog extraction site at Chat Moss, Salford were acquitted by Salford magistrates court yesterday.