Feature Interview

In Conversation With…

Mayor Joanne Anderson

How have you settled in to the role of Mayor?

It’s been a hugely positive experience so far and I’ve been pleasantly surprised by how well this early period has gone. Of course, there are huge challenges within that and the sheer volume and variety of matters can be pretty daunting at times and I have had to learn fast in some respects, but I’m relishing those challenges. Naturally I want to read the detail of everything that comes across my desk and, alongside my two portfolio roles at the Combined Authority, that can prove very difficult, but my professional background means that I have lots of general experience which gives me a head start in some of the new things I am learning about. I’m also accustomed to being very busy and I think that has probably helped me to adapt.

How do you plan to work with the local business community?

My overarching ambition is for the city to do great business with a good heart.

Having been around and connected to the business community for many years, including groups such as the Chamber’s Responsible Business Forum, I am absolutely committed to working with business.

“I feel a strong civic and personal duty to pave the way for the generations coming behind me and to make that pathway as smooth and seamless as possible.”

A high proportion of investment into people comes from businesses based and registered here and my focus is on how we best support those businesses to keep on investing and growing.

I’m a strong believer in the power of clusters and I will be trying to encourage businesses to work collaboratively together to strengthen their influence and provide a greater platform for growth and job creation.

We welcome businesses of all shapes and sizes and I’d really like to see them pulling together, adding social value and investing in people who want to live, work and stay here. That spirit in turn can help to attract further inward investment and create an upward spiral.

Will your professional experience in skills & employability play a big role in your mayoralty?

Yes, I certainly hope so.

Throughout my career, I am fully aware that I wouldn’t have got anywhere if employers hadn’t given me those chances.

Employability and skills are at the heart of how we can take the city region economy forward post-pandemic. I feel a strong civic and personal duty to pave the way for the generations coming behind me and to make that pathway as smooth and seamless as possible.

The route from school into work remains too unclear for many, while students are leaving universities without jobs to go to, and there is an even greater disparity for people from minority backgrounds.

We need to help businesses access all parts of the community to ensure we are unearthing the very best talent.

What do you see as the priority challenges and ambitions for the city?

As we hopefully move towards a postCovid world, we can see the fragility in some sectors such as hospitality, which is now struggling to recruit staff due to both Brexit and the fact that many workers have been displaced into other sectors during the pandemic.

We need a better pathway, just as we do in the care sector. I’d like to see Liverpool become a centre of excellence for worldclass training in certain sectors such as hospitality and then send those people around the world to share their expertise.

I am impatient for change and I want to get things done; this includes starting trial projects to create pathways now. What initiatives are there and how do we raise awareness and aspirations so that people go looking for those opportunities? This includes fixing postcode disadvantages and creating employment pathways that make a real difference.

What will the city council do to support these ambitions?

The only time the race equality unemployment gap closed in Liverpool was when we had a Positive Action programme at Liverpool City Council and I would like to create more programmes like that.

There are still various things we need to fix inhouse ourselves, such as making sure that businesses get their questions answered in a timely and effective fashion. We must continue to ask ourselves how best to spend public money on supporting businesses and this is certainly an area where I would welcome feedback and input from Chamber members.

You’re a strong advocate for wellbeing in the workplace, why do you think this is important?

I am guilty of working non-stop at times and since being the Mayor I have tried to pause a little and live in the moment. I think I have the best job in the City, and I think it’s important to remember to enjoy it. During Covid lockdowns, I was also studying an MA and as I would be working from home it would be commonplace for me to barely move a muscle all day and that’s certainly not good. I was also struggling to sleep, so I would go out on my bike as dawn was breaking and that would set me up for the day.

When I was appointed Mayor, I started work on the following Monday and I realised it would be very easy for me to never take a break. Let alone the rule of diminishing returns, I also recognised this would not be good for my mental or physical health so I decided I must take a day off each weekend to go for walks or socialise with family and friends. This has had a hugely positive effect on me and reinforces the value of topping up your happiness regularly.

If you had one wish for the city in the next 12 months, what would it be?

It would be to take people out of poverty as I think we should measure ourselves against the most vulnerable in our community. I want everyone to be able to access opportunities that improve their quality of life founded on a positive and intelligent local economy.