Rain rolled into Manchester on Saturday lunchtime — just in time to give the Prime Minister a very Mancunian welcome when he arrives in the city for conference.
Boris Johnson and his government will be in town from this weekend for the annual Conservative Party Conference, and with them are a rabble of the nation’s news crews, swathe of protestors, and hoard of police officers.
So, with Manchester the centre of the country’s political universe once more, we asked Mancs what they thought about our city hosting the event, how they feel about Boris Johnson, how Andy Burnham is doing — and what should be done to close the North-South divide.
On Cathedral Street, Gill Lingard and Joyce Bull are shopping. Joyce has a new coat on, and it’s getting a baptism of rain.
“Obviously transport, that’s a big thing,” she says when asked what needs to improve in Greater Manchester.
She adds: “I think a lot of southerners feel that we’re still walking round in clogs and shawls, you know.
“It’s more the perception from southerners [than the reality].”
Gill continues: “I think we’re still seen as very provincial, there’s nothing here. It’s a bit like Americans not leaving America because there’s nothing outside. Most people down south think of what’s coming up here.”
Much of the hype before this conference has surrounded two men: Boris and Burnham.
Earlier in the day, the mayor of Greater Manchester said he wanted to avoid a repeat of last year’s Covid cash row as he launched a £1 billion levelling up bid to improve the city-region’s transport infrastructure.
He did however add that ‘we never back down from an argument’, suggesting he’s prepared for Boris and Burnham round two.
With the political melodrama about to play out, it seems mancs are either pro-PM or pro-mayor — there’s no in-between.
“He’s a n**head,” Alice Bowden says of the Conservative Party leader.
The 25-year-old, walking her dog Frank on Deansgate, is much more praiseworthy of the Labour man.
She says: “He’s an absolute legend. He fights for the North, doesn’t he?”
Alice says she was unaware that the Tories were in town this weekend, adding it ‘makes sense’ for the conference to be in Manchester.
Anna Burlingsby, visiting the city from London, also dislikes the Prime Minister.
“He projects a bumbling air, whereas he knows exactly what he’s doing,” she explains as she waits for friends in St Peter’s Square.
On the opposite side of the political spectrum is Chris Proctor. The 50-year-old is sheltering from the wind and rain in St Ann’s Square.
He’s a fan of Boris, saying: “He did a great job [of Brexit], and I’m not a Brexiteer.
“I don’t particularly like Andy Burnham, the way he behaved during the Covid [row], I know everyone was supporting him here, but I thought he played that one wrong.”
One woman who is not a fan of either Andy Burnham or Boris Johnson is Sylvia Edwards, shopping with her family on King Street, Spinningfields.
“I’m not a fan of any of them, because all I see about politics, falling out, competition, and just wanting power,” the 76-year-old says.
Sylvia, from Worsley, adds: “It’s all about power, it’s not about doing things for the people, I’m not sure if it ever has been.
“Especially in these days after Covid, and after Brexit, we all need to get together. We’ve got so many problems to solve and get on and solve them without falling out and calling each other names.”
