5 november 2009, remember, remember, gunpowder, liam and trot

Thursday 5th November 2009

Good day today, of fireworks throughout, in a good sense. Was both our bimonthly Board, and also our biweekly senior management team – so pretty intense. As if that wasn’t enough, started with an early morning meet with liam byrne, alistair darling’s number 2 at the treasury, and master of the manchester city region process. He’s a good guy, generally impressive, with a good high-level gravitas and grasp, but equally at home with details and real things. He runs the show effortlessly but subtly, and listens; quickly jumping on things he’s interested in, and moving forward the discussion. One to watch.