A new report out this week suggests that there is an “integration policy vacuum” at the heart of government which the new mayors being elected this week including that of Greater Manchester, can help fill.
The report, Integration: From National Rhetoric to Local Reality, by the Independent Think Tank British Future, established to promote social cohesion, has identified integration problems in each of the six new combined authorities.
In Greater Manchester, particularly in Oldham and Rochdale, it claims there is a need for using new housing powers to address the geographic segregation of different faith and ethnic communities.
The Thinktank recommends the appointment of a deputy mayor, who would lead an Office for Citizenship and Integration to drive forward an integration agenda across the combined authority as has happened in in cities like New York, Barcelona, Hamburg and, most recently, in London.
In the capital, Mayor Sadiq Khan last year appointed Matthew Ryder as deputy mayor for social integration.
The proposal is supported by Professor Ted Cantle, leading authority on community cohesion and author of the ground-breaking ‘Cantle Report’ after the 2001 race riots in northern England. He said:
“Integration cannot be left to chance, it needs champions in every town and city – and all have different local issues which a deputy mayor can recognise and support. The deputy mayor can also create a real sense of partnership and purpose and bring together local businesses, schools, housing associations, faith organisations and local and voluntary agencies.
“We need unity more than ever to respond to those that seek to create divisions. Deputy mayors can begin to build bridges and create a real sense of belonging in their areas and, most of all, to develop practical actions to help all communities come to terms with change and build a common purpose.”
Last week, local MPs, educationalists and civil society leaders in the West Midlands signed a joint letter to the Birmingham Post urging candidates to support the appointment of a deputy mayor for integration.
