Notes from the North: Arena talk, local government reorganisation, and a rare apology
All the highlights from our exclusive reporting as part of The Lead North, including the potential for a new major venue in Lancashire.
If you want to watch a big gig and you live in Lancashire, you have to go to Manchester or Liverpool.
Once you take once-a-year outdoor occasions off the calendar, (Lytham Festival has done great things) that is the reality for people who live anywhere from Lancaster to Chorley, Lytham to Nelson.
But that could all change, depending on which politicians in Lancashire get their own way.
This is somewhat linked to the fact that local authorities are in for a major change thanks to local government reorganisation – and that means that some people want to leave a mark.
And in Southport, we turn our attention to Northern Rail, the provider of our train links to Manchester and West Lancashire which has become associated with delays, cancellations and uncomfortable journeys.
The Lead North titles are award-winning journalism from our reporters in the north that go deeper on pivotal issues than any other offering on the market.
They have been publishing since early 2024 and are delivered twice-a-week in Blackpool, Lancashire, Calderdale, Teesside and Southport.
Each week our senior editor for The Lead North, Luke Beardsworth, highlights some of the stories we’ve been breaking exclusively, covering extensively and staying the course on to ensure communities have access to verified independent journalism. If you have any stories you think we should be covering, or tip-offs, you can contact luke@thelead.uk
Battle to have Lancashire’s arena as politicians jostle to leave mark on areas
Jostling for position to be home to a large-scale venue in Lancashire is well and truly underway.
From Chris Webb sabre-rattling for an arena venue in Blackpool to big-hitting consultants scoping out whether Preston should be the centre of entertainment in the county there’s no shortage of claims to wanting to be the place for events to happen.
As The Lancashire Lead revealed last year, part of the ambition for the Red Rose county, whichever part of it you speak to, is for it to have a major events venue to be able to stand on its own two feet with regularity against the bright lights of Liverpool and Manchester.
This will be no simple project and involve a huge investment of public and private money to make it work – or be part of a broader redevelopment scheme as is proposed with the Blackpool Central plans.
Northern Rail says sorry for shoddy Southport services
Northern has apologised to Southport rail users for its performance and high rate of cancelled services.
The rail service is facing scrutiny over the cost and reliability of its services as it continues to be blighted by delays and cancellations during weekdays and Sundays during which almost no trains run due to a lack of available staff.
For years, Northern Rail has been a source of great frustration for Southport. With high fares, outdated trains, frequent delays and cancellations, non-existent Sunday services, and timetables too impractical to commute with, there has been little to cheer from the town’s direct public transport link to Manchester.
Despite being taken under government control in 2020, problems have persisted on the network and the likes of the Ormskirk, Preston and Southport Travellers Association (OPSTA) have consistently lobbied for improvements.
Blackpool Council puts forward its preferred method for abolishing itself - but what else could happen?
Blackpool Council has formally decided the way that it wants to abolish itself - and if nothing else they appear to have put forward the most unique suggestion.
The Labour-led authority has put forward a proposal that would see a new local authority created that includes Blackpool, Fylde, Preston – and half of Wyre.
It is the only proposal that suggests reshaping Lancashire in this manner – all other proposals put forward by authorities see areas group together in the shape they currently are.
This is part of the Local Government Reorganisation plans being insisted by the government that essentially see all two-tier council systems removed and replaced by unitary authorities serving populations of around 500,000.
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