The greatest local government officer for many decades. That was the assessment of former Chancellor George Osborne on Tuesday he was addressing a gathering of a thousand people in Manchester’s Bridgewater Hall. Most of the big hitters who had been involved in the regeneration of Manchester and the wider North West since the nineteen seventies were there to remember Sir Howard Bernstein. He had gone from office boy to Chief Executive of Manchester City Council. With the political leader, Graham Stringer and Sir Richard Leese he took the city from the depths of the seventies slump and IRA bomb of 1992 to the skyscraper success it is today.
It was an event never likely to be repeated. As well as the tributes to his regeneration of the city, there was a strong presence from his beloved Manchester City football club and touching tributes from his family. Bernstein was known as a workaholic but it became clear that he still had lots of time for his family. It was impressive that the event gave us a full picture of the public and private man.
One of Bernstein’s greatest achievements was to keep together the ten districts of Greater Manchester ready for the coming of Combined Authorities and elected mayors. The sub region was ready to embrace the Tory government’s Northern Powerhouse initiative. It explains the impressive turnout of Tory grandees in a heavily Labour part of the country. As well as George Osborne, Lord Heseltine was there and former minister Greg Clarke.
The clearest example of this unlikely team working was when the Americans made a big offer for the inventors of the wonder product graphene at Manchester University to develop the product in the States. Bernstein was immediately on a direct call to Chancellor Osborne to help raise the £60 million needed to keep the development of graphene here.
Steve Rotheram ruefully recalled that episode at a Downtown event the next day. The mayor of the Liverpool City Region was reflecting that his patch still had a long way to go to match Manchester. Past rivalries between the city and the sub region and between different Merseyside councils have contributed to this.
However, under Rotheram’s leadership that is all in the past. He is determined that his City Region will match the example of Bernstein in attracting global investment to an area that actually has greater worldwide resonance than Manchester. He had recently been to Mexico and the USA where he encountered great affection and recognition of the Liverpool brand. Now the task is to turn that into real investment.
Projects are on the horizon, Universal Pictures are looking at an immersive Beatles experience. Advance work is underway on the Mersey Tidal Barrier. The Tory plan to use an old Fiddler’s Ferry coal line as a new rail line has been junked with a new route being developed. Glass Futures in St Helens is leading the way in decarbonising a high energy use industry. Glider buses will be used to solve a developing problem of football fans access to Everton’s new stadium and the bigger Anfield.
Rotheram was once again in rueful mood reflecting on the failure of the Liverpool region to develop a tram system like Manchester in the nineties, but he has learnt the lessons and is determined to realise the potential of Combined Authorities.
