Market forces

LABOUR REVEALS PLAN FOR REBIRTH OF THE NORTHERN MARKET TOWN

- CHARLOTTE HALL

IN AN independent kombucha brewery under a railway bridge in Manchester Piccadilly, the new Secretary of State for Business and Trade suggested he would be ringing in a new era for Greater Manchester's dying market towns.

But Jonathan Reynolds, MP for Stalybridge and Hyde, also indicated there could be 'difficult decisions' ahead.

Traditional market towns like Oldham and Hyde have seen a rapid decline in recent years, with high street shops left empty and a collapse in footfall and spending.

The deterioration accelerated during the change in shopping habits during the pandemic and has struggled to pick up again during the cost-of-living crisis.

Speaking to the LDRS at Hip Pop bottling works, Mr Reynolds said: "The last Labour government really led the rebirth of the big northern city. I think we're going to do a similar job for towns with pilot projects and a better business environment.

"I don't want to look at the past. I know from the kinds of market towns I represent, they've changed in terms of business and shopping habits. But I still think they're really important. I think there's a better future and I want that to be a priority for the country."

He said he was looking for towns around the country to become 'exemplars for how that regeneration could happen, which would be helped along by new policies surrounding business rates and new powers for councils to tackle derelict properties.