Manchester’s future is creative, says report

A REPORT on Manchester’s future and growth potential, which said the creative sector holds the key to the city’s future growth and prosperity, met with resistance from city council boss Sir Howard Bernstein, at its launch yesterday.

According to the report by Nesta, called Original Modern: Manchester’s journey to innovation and growth, Manchester is “overwhelmingly” the creative hub outside the South East.

Meanwhile, its financial sectors, which account for a sixth of the city’s employment, is contracting, it said. Manufacturing and life sciences are also facing competition from overseas and seeing lower growth, the report added.

On a panel debate at Manchester’s Lowry Hotel, the report’s author Charlie Leadbeater said: “What Manchester needs is a shift of focus in the next 10 years. Buildings and physical infrastructure are important but even more important is people and culture.”

But Sir Howard Bernstein, chief executive of Manchester City Council, said the city should continue to focus on its financial services sector, and added that the city is making a name for itself as a lower cost alternative for financial service operations in the UK.

He said: “I agree with the major part of the analysis… but that we should focus on people and culture, rather than commercial and property? We have to do both if we are to continue to grow.

“Take financial services, we have got to make more opportunities like Spinningfields going forward. We can’t just say we’ve ticked that box now.”

All agreed that the city region pilot was a huge opportunity for Manchester.

Sir Howard added: “One of the reasons we grasped the city region pilot is because we are driving a public sector reform agenda. The pilot project is providing an evidence base to roll out those programs.

“It’s about how we engage regional and national government and encourage them to focus on the place and align their programs around the city.

“It’s important to recognise that Manchester is more important than most places. It is an economic powerhouse and impacts on the whole of the north of England.”