Freedom of city is deserved

Just for the sight of 7,000 workers driving cattle across Wearmouth Bridge is reason enough, in my book, for bestowing the honour of freedom of the city on Nissan.

Grazing rights are traditionally among the perks of being a freeman, though the details of what rights the workforce will get in this instance are not entirely clear. Few of the workers will have cattle anyway, but that’s by the by.

This honour is, for the most part, a symbolic one.

It’s recognition of not just the huge positive impact the company has had on our community, but an acknowledgement that its success is largely down to the efforts of the workforce. What’s not to celebrate? There are those who have already expressed their anger at the award.

Why, they ask, should people be rewarded for ‘just doing their job?’ Those critics take the point further by saying if we are to honour any workforce that does good, why not give the freedom of the city to NHS nurses or hardworking firefighters?

Instead of asking why, they should be asking why not? And there are many more reasons to give this honour, than not.

Nissan is not just a key player in the community, but is firmly at the heart of Sunderland’s economic resurgence. It has been a success story from day one, but in recent years has helped inform the future for the city. Statistics alone set it apart from most, with the plant breaking production records year on year.

However, the security it has brought to families and the pride it has instilled in the community is not so easy to measure.

But it’s easy to reward. The freedom of the city to workers is the least we can do to recognise the contribution Nissan has made.