To approve as a correct record the minutes of the meeting held on 8 October 2024.

Decision:

That the minutes of the meeting held on 8 October 2024 be approved as a correct record.

Report of the Strategic Director (Growth and Development)

This report provides an update on the current/recent performance of and future plans for public transport in Manchester.

The Committee received a report of the Strategic Director (Growth and Development) which provided an update on the recent performance of and future plans for public transport in Manchester.

Key points and themes within the report included:

• The Bee Network;
• Bus franchising operation and implementation;
• Metrolink performance;
• Bikes on Metrolink;
• Greater Manchester Rail Network;
• Bee Network fares, ticketing and customer experience;
• Transport infrastructure pipeline; and
• Strategy and reform.

Key points and queries that arose from the Committee’s discussions included:

• To broadly welcome the changes being made, including bus franchising, the extension of the £2 cap on bus fares and the introduction of ‘hopper’ fares;
• To welcome the Credit Union offer for season tickets;
• Whether bus franchising would result in bus services which connected local communities, rather than providing journeys into the city centre, being reinstated;
• Concern that bus operators which had not been awarded the new franchises, starting in January, were no longer taking responsibility for service performance in their final months of operating on those routes;
• Overcrowding of trams at peak times;
• The importance of modal shift from cars to public transport to reduce congestion and improve air quality;
• Safety and perceptions of safety when using public transport;
• Promoting the chat function on the Bee Network app, which enabled users to speak directly to the police, as well as the WalkSafe app;
• Issues with Northern Rail and the impact of ‘do not travel’ notices on people’s confidence in public transport;
• Concern about Northern Rail stopping selling advance tickets 15 minutes before travel;
• Aspirations for rail, noting the large population of Wythenshawe that was not served by a train station;
• Serving parts of the city that were not covered by Metrolink;
• Branding of public transport options at Manchester Airport and ensuring a positive experience for people arriving into the city;
• To welcome the number of jobs and apprenticeships being created and to request more information on employment in a future report; and
• Whether the one-hour limit for hopper fares was sufficient.

The Executive Member for Clean Air, Environment and Transport advised that she would take forward the point about making the chat function on the app easier to find.  She informed Members about the partnership with Strut Safe, which provided a phone line with volunteers that a person could talk to if they were walking alone.  She reported that Andy Burnham, Mayor of Greater Manchester, was working hard to raise the issues in relation to Northern Rail and to try to get a better service.

Jonathan Marsh from TfGM reported that funding was being used to purchase more vehicles to provide double trams at peak times and that increasing capacity on the Metrolink system would continue to be a focus for future funding.  He informed Members that next generation trams were also being considered, moving away from double trams to larger single vehicles.  In response to a Member’s question, he informed Members about the draft Rapid Transit Strategy, which included 15 priority projects which were being looked at to determine  ...  view the full minutes text for item 42.

Report of the Strategic Director (Growth and Development)

This report provides an overview of the visitor and night-time economy in Manchester, demonstrating the city’s strong position and the scale of the opportunity in the coming years. It highlights the changes and economic challenges which all cities are grappling with and demonstrates how Manchester is well placed to capitalise on emerging trends. It also sets out the proposed next steps to ensure that we are best positioned to support growth in a way which maximises these opportunities.

The Committee received a report of the Strategic Director (Growth and Development) which provided an overview of the visitor and night-time economy in Manchester, demonstrating the city’s strong position and the scale of the opportunity in the coming years. It highlighted the changes and economic challenges which all cities were grappling with and demonstrated how Manchester was well placed to capitalise on emerging trends. It also set out the proposed next steps to ensure that the city was best positioned to support growth in a way which maximised these opportunities.

Key points and themes within the report included:

• Visitor economy highlights;
• The visitor experience;
• Visitor attractions and cultural offer;
• Travel and transport highlights;
• Hotels and accommodation in Manchester;
• An overview of the evening and night-time economy;
• Retail and leisure highlights;
• Opportunities and challenges; and
• Next steps.

Nick Brooks-Sykes from Marketing Manchester provided an overview of key points, including highlighting the forthcoming launch of a new Visitor Economy Strategy and suggesting that further information on this be provided at a future meeting.  The Chair agreed to this proposal.

Key points and queries that arose from the Committee’s discussions included:

• To welcome the strong cultural and leisure offer in the city;
• To welcome the shift to more independent businesses in the city centre;
• Balancing the needs of people living in and near the city centre and the need to drive numbers of visitors to the city centre and provide a good cultural offer;
• Safety and perceptions of safety including for people working in the night-time economy, referencing Unite the Union's Get Me Home Safely Campaign, and for particular communities, such as trans people;
• The impact of the introduction of the Accommodation Business Improvement District (ABID);
• The impact of the night-time economy on public services, including the police and health services, and the need for late night public transport;
• That a lot of the night-time economy was focused on alcohol consumption;
• Improving the offer for families with children;
• That Manchester had some thriving district centres and how were they linked into the strategy;
• Where visitors to the city centre were coming from;
• Signage to better walking routes to help visitors navigate the city;
• Was more hotel capacity needed; and
• Recognising that different parts of the city centre had different characters and faced different challenges.

The Strategic Director (Growth and Development) agreed that balance was important, highlighting the growth in relation to homes, jobs and the cultural offer in the city centre.  She advised that licensing decision on the times that venues could stay open until helped to deliver this balance but that busy city centre streets needed to be managed, and she informed Members that the Night-time Economy Strategy would focus on broadening and deepening the offer as well as on how to manage it.  She informed Members that the ABID Board, which was primarily led by hoteliers, oversaw the use of the £1 levy on room bookings to increase hotel occupancy, advising that their work focused on targeted marketing, increasing business events,  ...  view the full minutes text for item 43.

Report and presentation of the Strategic Director (Growth and Development)

This report and presentation provide an update on the main announcements from the Statement, focusing on those which have a direct implication for the remit of the Committee.  

The Committee received a report and presentation of the Strategic Director (Growth and Development) which provided an update on the main announcements from the Statement, focusing on those which had a direct implication for the remit of the Committee.

Key points and themes within the report and presentation included:

• An overview of the Autumn Budget;
• Key announcements for Manchester and for local authorities;
• Economic growth;
• Business;
• Regeneration;
• Housing;
• Transport and highways; and
• Work and skills.

Key points and queries that arose from the Committee’s discussions included:

• To broadly welcome the budget statement from the Government;
• Asking the Executive Members present for their views on the impact within their areas of responsibility;
• The impact of changes to National Insurance;
• The Single Settlement and ensuring that Manchester received a fair share;
• Business rates;
• Whether there would be funding for infrastructure to support economic growth, including energy infrastructure;
• Rail services, following the decision on HS2;
• Concern that the investment in walking and cycling infrastructure would not be sufficient;
• The Apprenticeship Levy;
• Affordable housing; and
• To welcome the additional funding for colleges.

The Head of City Policy reported that it was currently too early to provide an accurate analysis of what the changes to National Insurance would mean for the city but that this would be analysed.  He confirmed that the Council would be making a submission to the business rates review.  He reported that the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero had had a significant increase in their budget but that it was not yet known what the impact would be on the energy infrastructure for Manchester.  He advised that reform to the Apprenticeship Levy was welcomed but that the Council would need to see the details of this.

The Strategic Director (Growth and Development) reported that the city would continue to make the case for the rail infrastructure that the north needed and that it was likely that there would be more information on this in the spending review in the spring.  She reported that the confirmation of the Greater Manchester Single Settlement was welcomed, although there were some risks, and she advised that positive discussions were taking place at a Greater Manchester level on the prioritisation of investment, as well as separate discussions with the national Government on some of the larger projects across the city region, such as Victoria North.  In response to a question from the Chair, she reported that preparations were already underway for the spring spending review and that a submission would be made in advance with an integrated offer and ask for Manchester, including growth, housing delivery, meeting the net zero challenge, transport and public service reform, with an emphasis on prevention.

The Executive Member for Housing and Development welcomed the additional funding for the Affordable Homes Programme.  He also welcomed the changes on Right To Buy, which he advised would reduce the amount of social housing which was lost, although he reported that the Council would continue to call for further reform.  He also  ...  view the full minutes text for item 44.

Report of the Governance and Scrutiny Support Unit

This report provides the Committee with details of key decisions that fall within the Committee’s remit and an update on actions resulting from the Committee’s recommendations. The report also includes the Committee’s work programme, which the Committee is asked to amend as appropriate and agree, and the Economy Dashboard for information.

A report of the Governance and Scrutiny Support Unit was submitted. The overview report contained key decisions within the Committee’s remit, responses to previous recommendations and the Committee’s work programme, which the Committee was asked to approve.  The report also included the Quarterly Economy Dashboard, for information.

In response to a Member’s question about the previous recommendation “that the Council’s representatives on TfGM and the GMCA communicate the recommendation that the ‘Right Mix’ deliver carbon reductions in line with the Council’s carbon budget”, the Committee Support Officer advised that the Executive Member for Clean Air, Environment and Transport had agreed to raise this at a future Bee Network meeting, when the relevant item was on the agenda.  The Chair stated that he would speak to the Executive Member about this.

In response to a question about the previous recommendation that “when the Social Value Framework is next reviewed, children and families who have experienced homelessness be added as a priority group”, it was agreed that the Committee Support Officer would follow up on this.

Decisions:

1. That the Committee note the report, including the Quarterly Economy Dashboard, and agree the work programme.

2. That the Committee Support Officer will check on the timeline for the review of the Social Value Framework, in relation to the previous recommendation.