Manchester's Bonfire Night displays could return

Manchester could bring back public events including bonfires and firework displays after the government increased funding for the next financial year.

The council has gone from concerns about closing a £19m budget black hole to having a £14m surplus after huge changes were made to the grants councils receive.

"We are looking at bringing back community events such as the bonfire and firework displays," councillor Rabnawaz Akbar told the Local Democracy Reporting Service, following the changes.

"Mancs will begin to feel something that has been missing for a long time - hope,"

He continued: "But just because we have more money does not mean we will spend it without thinking about it.

"We will still deliver services in the most effective means, we will continue to invest in preventative measures in adults' and children's services."

Manchester's public firework displays were halted over the coronavirus pandemic and have not returned since.

The BBC understands the extra cash could also be spent on gully cleaning, park maintenance, and a crackdown on rogue private landlords.

Akbar said it could also mean reviewing the hours community libraries could open.

Reforms to local government finance were key Labour pledges, and after giving councils a £20m "recovery grant" in the government's first year, ministers have laid out long-term plans.

They include multi-year settlements for the first time in a decade, effectively confirming how much cash town halls will receive in three years' time.

The overhaul also includes new formulas taking deprivation and population change into account, keeping the £20m recovery grant, and factoring in business rates into forecasts.

However, council tax will still rise by nearly 5% in April, the maximum allowed without a citywide referendum.

At the time, Coun Akbar defended that as a prudent move.

"It's built into all the government assumptions that council tax will increase by 4.99%," he said.

"There are authorities, since 2016, which did not increase but maximum allowable.

"Once you do not raise it you lose it forever.

"Last year, 30 councils asked the government for exceptional financial support — 19 had not asked for the maximum allowable council tax from 2016."

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