Hale Independent Issue 172

NOVEMBER 2024 4 MANCHESTER Airport has reached a major milestone by recording 30 mil- lion passengers in a year – putting it alongside some of the biggest airports in the world. It puts Manchester in the so-called “30 Mil- lion Club” – alongside major international airports like La Guardia, in New York, Mel- bourne Airport, in Australia, Hamad Inter- national Airport, in Doha, and Sabia Gokcen International Airport, in Istanbul. Manchester boasts the most extensive route network of any UK airport outside London, with more than 200 destinations served – including several added in the last year such as Shanghai, Las Vegas and Casablanca. These new routes have proved popular, help- ing the airport reach the passenger milestone. More than 30.1 million people flew into or out of Manchester between the end of Sep- tember 2023 and the end of September this year. The airport set records in each indi- vidual month Managing director Chris Woodroofe said: “We’re proud to connect the North to the world – whether that’s for holidays, to see family and friends or for business. “Breaking through the 30m passenger bar- rier tells us we are giving people across the region great access to the places they want to travel to. “It cements our position as the UK’s global gateway in the North – the biggest airport outside London – and means we are rubbing shoulders with some of the best-known air- ports across Europe and the world.” He added: “Hitting this milestone comes at a really exciting time, with our transfor- mation programme set to be fully complete next year. “It means we’ll be welcoming passengers to an airport that rivals any in major capi- tals around Europe in its all-around look and feel, service, facilities and the destinations it serves. “I’m proud of everything we’ve achieved in the last 12 months. We’ve had our busiest year yet but at the same time over 98 per cent of our passengers waited less than 15 minutes to get to security.” THE man tasked with preparing Northern for autumn says the train operator is ready to tackle the “big problem” of fallen leaves on the line. In his 10th autumn with the company, seasonal perfor- mance improvement manager Rob Cummings has worked hard to minimise disruption for customers and ensure they can reach their destina- tions safely. He said: “Leaves on the line is a serious safety and perfor- mance issue for the railway. You have a steel wheel on a steel rail and anything that causes low adhesion can be Council faces £26m budget gap TRAFFORD Council has revealed it needs to plug a budget gap of nearly £26million for the next financial year. The scale of savings the local authority must make to balance its books have been made clear in a stark new report to councillors setting out draft budget proposals for 2025/26. The current shortfall in cash for essential services follows reductions in the funding awarded to Traf- ford over a significant num- ber of years alongside sharp increases in support needed SPECIAL REPORT Warnings: Trafford Council leader Tom Ross by some of the most vulnera- ble residents in the borough. Council leader Tom Ross has warned balancing the books is getting harder and harder every year and councillors now face making some tough and unpopu- lar decisions. He said: “We have suffered more than £300m of cuts over the decade and a half yet our services are more in demand than ever. This is simply unsustainable, even for a well-run council like Trafford.” A recent independent review by finance specialists the Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Account- ancy (CIPFA) confirmed that the council handles money matters well but faces his- toric funding challenges. Cllr Ross said: “CIPFA recognised we are a finan- cially well-run council but also recognised the funding issues we face. “We are the lowest-funded council in Greater Man- chester and need a fair deal. We called for a fair funding review last year but this has not happened and we are now seeing the consequences.” Council Tax is set to go up by 2.99 per cent, with the adult social care precept rising by two per cent. Trafford residents will still have the second-lowest Council Tax rate in Greater Manchester, despite the increase. A draft proposal to reintroduce an annual charge of £45 for collec- tion of garden waste is also being explored. Cllr Ross said: “It is becoming harder to deliver key services within budget and so we will consult on reintroducing a charge, in line with the vast majority of other councils across the country and indeed some within Greater Manchester to help us to continue to pro- vide much needed services across the borough. “The key thing is that the tough decisions we make now will enable us to continue to deliver services and support us to set a balanced budget next April.” People will be asked to have their say on a number of draft proposals over the coming weeks but Cllr Ross said there is no quick fix unless the Council receives more funding. He said: “This will be one of the toughest revenue budgets that the council has ever set and we are having to make some difficult choices. “However, we will continue to invest in our corporate pri- orities, including an increase in social care spending for our most vulnerable children and adults. “We will continue to invest in roads and street cleaning. We will also maintain our capital investment projects in our town centres to deliver a thriving economy for all. “We will also continue to lobby the government for a fairer financial settlement for Trafford.” Flying high! Milestone: Airport numbers are on the rise ‘Leaf it’ to Rob Seeing things in a different light A SCULPTURE created out of a mental health andwellbeingproject hasbeenunveiled inSale. Ekun Richards’ A Different Light will be a permanent installation in the foyer at SaleWaterside. It was officially unveiled on World Mental Health Day, and was a collaboration between We AreWillow,Wild inArts andArts andMinds. Arts and Minds is a community group set up by Bluesci, a mental health and wellbeing service in Trafford that offers a variety of pro- grammes and services to help people improve theirmental health andwellbeing. Manchester based artist Ekun relishes rich, earthy tones that celebrate the physicality of nature. His artwork ADifferent Light is one of a series of six striking sculptures that were installed across Greater Manchester to promote mental health awareness andwellbeing. The project was funded and supported by the Greater Manchester Integrated Care Partnership, Salford City Council, The University ofSalford,LandsecU+IandArtsCouncilEngland. Artwork: The sculpture that can now be seen at SaleWaterside (Photo credit: Trafford Council) a big problem.” Known as the black ice of the railways, the leaves are compressed in wet weather and they form a thin, slippery layer on the rail which can cause trains to slide. Drivers must pull away more slowly and brake ear- lier for stations and signals to make sure they stop in time. This can lead to longer jour- ney times and delays. Northern, which operates services across Cheshire and Greater Manchester, has spent nine months pre- paring for the autumn and completed the roll-out of addi- tional equipment on its fleet of trains in the summer. Northern works closely with Network Rail, which runs railhead treatment trains along the lines six days a week to blast leaf mulch off the tracks and apply a gel – containing a mix of sand and steel grains – to help services run smoothly. Trains have also been fitted with the latest technology. Warning of tough choices ahead