Tributes have been paid to Councillor Pat Karney following his passing yesterday (13 October 2026).<\/p>\n
He had represented the Harpurhey ward on Manchester City Council since 1979 and was a prominent politician for much of that time, including playing a pivotal role in the regeneration of the city centre following the IRA bomb attack on the city centre in 1996.<\/p>\n
Mayor of Greater Manchester Bev Craig, who worked closely with Cllr Carney between 2011 and 2026 when she was Councillor for Burnage and then Leader of Manchester City Council, led the triubutes.<\/p>\n
She said: “Across Manchester and across politics, many will mourn the loss of Pat Karney, a force of nature who served our city for half a century. My thoughts are with his family, who he treasured and adored, at this difficult time. He will always be in our hearts.<\/p>\n
\u201cAffectionately known by many as Mr Manchester, Pat was one of the city\u2019s most recognisable figures. Through Manchester\u2019s renaissance, Pat championed making our city what it is today from the regeneration of the city centre, improving the health of Manchester people, to the creation of Manchester Day- he was incredibly proud of Manchester and recognised the need to bring people together.<\/p>\n
\u201cA local north Manchester boy, he championed Manchester while ferociously fighting for the people of Harpuhey and Collyhurst. He delivered on the ground from new council housing and a GP surgery to championing a new North Manchester Hospital.<\/p>\n
\u201cPat was one of a kind, passionate, determined, sharp and quick witted, but he was also thoughtful, kind and supportive. He will be remembered too for his sense of fun.<\/p>\n
\u201cA private man, he was in many ways a trailblazer in politics, someone who sacrificed a lot to be himself he championed the gay village and LGBT equality, he paved the way for generations who came after him.<\/p>\n
\u201cWorking together for over 15 years we became good friends and like many I will miss him- but also make sure his achievements are celebrated in a way that he would be proud of.\u201d<\/p>\n
Manchester City Council leader Garry Bridges said Cllr Karney was “Manchester through and through and he never lost his determination to champion the city or his astute political judgement”.<\/p>\n
He added: “Pat was a giant of Manchester politics and one of the city’s most recognisable public figures for nearly 50 years.<\/p>\n
“He never lost his connection to where he came from. He was proud to be from Collyhurst and to represent the people of Harpurhey and Collyhurst.”<\/p>\n
Bridges also said Karney was “deeply serious about his politics and his values” had “a great sense of fun” and was not afraid to use “a gimmick or two” to get his message across.<\/p>\n
“For us in the council, we knew the Pat that everyone else knew, but we also knew him as a friend, someone who was always there with sage advice.<\/p>\n
“We will miss him personally as much as we will miss him politically.”<\/p>\n
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Bev Craig: ‘Pat was one of a kind, passionate, determined, sharp and quick witted, but he was also thoughtful, kind and supportive’<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":264565,"featured_media":2180730,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[136545],"coauthors":[116163],"class_list":["post-2180728","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-local-government","tag-featured-story","tag-greater-manchester"],"yoast_head":"\n