Expectations high for new mayor of South Yorkshire
MAYORAL MATTERS
THE NEW mayor of South Yorkshire will get to work during his first full week on the job after last week’s local elections.
Voters elected Labour and Co-op’s Oliver Coppard to take over from Dan Jarvis, who had decided to step down to focus on his role as MP for Barnsley Central.
Transport in South Yorkshire will be a major item in Mr Coppard’s in-tray, with calls to bring buses under public control.
However there is also an education and skills gap that the mayor will need to contend with, according to Centre for Cities chief executive Andrew Carter.
Writing recently in The Yorkshire Post, Mr Carter said: “Whilst it has a huge amount of potential, Sheffield has been lagging behind other northern cities in the jobs market.
“The total number of jobs in the city centre fell by two per cent between 1998 and 2015, while the number of jobs grew by at least 25 percent in other northern city centres, including Manchester, Leeds and Liverpool.”
Mr Coppard has pledged to create “more, better paid jobs in the industries of the future”, “bring down bills and find a path to energy security”, “fix our buses” and “bring more money, power and investment into our region”.
EQUINE AND COUNTRY
FIVE HUNDRED horses and 1,000 performers are to create a spectacular show as part of the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee year celebrations.
A Gallop Through History will take place at Windsor Castle on Thursday during an event billed to include actors and artists, musicians, international military displays from the Commonwealth, Europe and UK Armed Forces, dancers and equestrians.
It comes ahead of the extended Platinum Jubilee bank holiday weekend next month, when the public get June 2 and 3 off during celebrations of Queen’s 70 years on the throne.
EUROVISION
THE FINAL of the Eurovision Song Contest takes place in Turin on Saturday during a year when contestants and spectators alike will rally around Ukraine. Kalush Orchestra’s upbeat, melodic entry Stefania was written as a tribute to the frontman’s mother, but it has become an anthem for the war-ravaged nation since the Russian invasion.
It was reported last week that Stefania was the most-watched song on YouTube among the 35 national entries that will compete in the contest.
While some bookmakers and data analysts have predicated others to win, the song is quickly becoming a sentimental favourite.
“I’ll always find my way home, even if all roads are destroyed,” Kalush Orchestra frontman Oleh Psiuk wrote in Stefania.
The lyrics have become more poignant as Russian missiles pound Ukrainian cities and villages, forcing more than 11 million people to flee the country already.
The United Kingdom is being represented by Sam Ryder, performing the song Space Man, co-written Max Wolfgang and Amy Wadge.
TRADE DEAL
THE UK-AUSTRALIA Free Trade Agreement will be the focus of debate in Parliament.
The Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee is due to convene on Wednesday.
Following the deal, concerns have been raised about the implications on food and farming standards.
Among those giving oral evidence during the sessions will be Professor Lorand Bartels, Chair at Trade and Agriculture Commission, Farming Minister Victoria Prentis, and James Clarke, Deputy Chief Negotiator at Department for International Trade.
Major job for new mayor, an equine spectacular for the Queen, rallying around Ukraine at Eurovision and Australia trade deal scrutiny. John Blow looks at the week ahead.