So, here we are. Devolved! The North East has its first Mayor. The months up to the election saw an accumulation of hope for — and demands on — what our Mayor should do. At the many hustings and debates that took place, I lost count of the number of times candidates were asked ‘what …
In terms of their impact on national politics, local elections are often about which party is better at playing the ‘expectations game’ The trick is to set a target number of seats which you then comfortably overshoot, or alternatively, if you are the incumbent government, a maximum number of seats you expect to lose which …
The long-awaited devolution deal in the North East — proper, real devolution with the money for transport until now held back — is finally here. The final count was delivered before the Bank Holiday weekend, way ahead of the rest of the country. As most people got on with enjoying their long weekends, I waited …
It’s been quite a week. The first North East Mayor has already chaired her first meeting of the new combined authority. Kim McGuinness was one of 10 Labour mayors elected last week. Further south, Ben Houchen gave the Conservatives their only success when he comfortably held on to his position in the Tees Valley for …
Do you remember what you were doing or where you were on Thursday November 4, 2004? It was an important day in our region’s history — but it could have been an historic one. We were asked to vote on whether we wanted an elected North East Assembly. Scotland and Wales already had a devolved …
Every politician’s nemesis: the ordinary voter. For our elected representatives, there’s no higher stakes moment than a conversation out in the wild. On such interactions are elections won and lost, and careers made or destroyed. There’s a long history of things getting ugly. In 1880, Joseph Cowen Jr, the founder of the Tyne Theatre, owner …
Whenever I go to leading UK tech events, be it in London or elsewhere around the nation, two questions are often thrown at me: “What are the North East’s tech strengths?” and, unless I’m in Scotland: “What tech companies have you got up there?” While the questions, the latter especially, could be considered ignorant or …
Having observed the rise and fall of several governments over the course of my career, it seems to me that there always comes a point in the lifetime of an administration where all events conspire to the one end of inevitable electoral defeat. I witnessed it with the long, slow demise of John Major’s Government …
Passionate climate change campaigner Jamie Driscoll was in his element at the North East mayoral hustings held in Alnwick last night (Wed) to explore candidates’ views on environmental and rural issues. The event was organised by Alnwick Friends of the Earth specifically to discuss green talking points and especially those affecting the North East. And …
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