Your top 10 – Manchester’s next council chief revealed; Dragon-backed business goes under; and what price for a congestion free commute?

THIS week’s best read story was Friday’s late breaking news that Manchester City Council has chosen who will succeed Sir Howard Bernstein as its chief executive.

Joanne Roney, currently chief executive of Wakefield Metropolitan Borough Council, is to take over the top job in the spring, after what the council described as a “rigorous interview process”.

Sir Howard, who joined the council as a junior clerk in 1971 and has been chief executive since 1998, was always going to be a tough act to follow.

He has played a central role in the regeneration and economic growth of the city, including overseeing the transformation of the city centre in the aftermath of the 1996 IRA bombing.

Since then the city has experienced unprecedented growth and investment including flagship developments such as Spinningfields, NOMA, First Street, Corridor Manchester and forthcoming investments in St John’s, Airport City, the Northern Gateway and HS2.

But the council says that Roney, who has been in charge at Wakefield Council since 2008, has a strong track record in transforming public services and delivering major regeneration initiatives such as the Hepworth Gallery.

As Sir Richard Leese, leader of Manchester City Council, said: “Exciting times”.

Earlier in the week we exclusively reported on the demise of dragon-backed photo booth company Zeven Media.

The Stretford company – backed with £50,000 by TV ‘Dragon’ Deborah Meaden in 2015 for a 25% stake – has gone into voluntary liquidation.

Founded by brothers Josh and Hyrum Cook, and employed six people, the company’s booths allowed users to pose for a photo and share it immediately via text message, Facebook, Twitter or email, as well keep as a branded printout.

But it failed to make its social media model pay and struggled to break even.

What price tag would you put on a congestion free commute? Plans for major new link roads costing £19bn, which would ease commuting woes across Greater Manchester have been revealed.
 
The DfT says all of the proposals are “speculative” and there are no firm details about what type of roads could be built, motorways, A-roads or dual carriageways.

So, much like HS2, we know the eye-watering costs of such much-needed improvements but little idea of when or whether it will ever happen.