As Greater Manchester prepares to receive significant investment in its housing market through the Housing Investment Fund, plans for how best to maximise benefits through devolved powers are beginning to take shape. In particular, the public sector is now starting to think about how changes to powers relating to housing, planning and transport can work for the benefit of the entire Greater Manchester conurbation.

A great deal of discussion has been had about how assess the potential utilisation use of brownfield, greenfield and greenbelt sites, all of which will be evaluated by the Combined Authority as it prepares the Greater Manchester Spatial Framework. In particular, attention will be paid to the sustainability of potential sites: focusing development in areas with the existing infrastructure capacity to support population growth. Some of these sites are public sector land, with a number of transport assets potentially providing highly sustainable and accessible locations for new housing.

The realisation of the 'SuperNorth' vision requires continued investment in the infrastructure of both Greater Manchester and in its connections to other neighbouring cities. Greater Manchester will only stand a chance of competing on the international stage if it performs within a highly connected wider economic region, where residents of Manchester can access the markets of Sheffield, Leeds and Liverpool (and vice versa). This kind of region requires a commitment from Government to invest in Northern infrastructure.

Meeting our economic growth goals has broad long-term benefits, with success for Greater Manchester meaning success for the North, as a counterbalance to the economic strength of the South East. Neighbouring city regions continue to look to Greater Manchester for inspiration and ideas on the 'art of the possible'. It's exciting to observe with each Combined Authority building their own devolution model, tailored to their needs and level of ambition.

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