Manchester Council spends more on Christmas lights than anywhere else in England

Manchester Council spends more money on Christmas lights than anywhere else in England, new data suggests. The town hall's budget for Christmas lights and other decorations is around £250,000 this year, according to the figures.

Like many other councils across the country, Manchester's Christmas lights budget has actually been cut this year. Last year, the local authority spent £285,210 on decorations during the holiday season, meaning the budget has been cut by 12 per cent for Christmas 2024.

Based on the data provided by councils that responded to the Freedom of Information requests by Hexo Electrical Testing - which submitted requests to more than 500 local authorities - at least £12.7m of taxpayer’s money has been budgeted for the installation, de-installation and hire of Christmas light displays across the UK, a small decrease from 2023 of 0.49 per cent.

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The company found that only councils in Belfast and Lisburn and Castlereagh in Northern Ireland and Glasgow in Scotland have allocated more money for festive illuminations this year. In the North West of England, the reduction in Christmas lights budgets has been larger though, with a 6.61 per cent cut compared to the total spent last year.

Manchester Council procures its city centre festive lighting scheme each year from specialist festive lighting suppliers with the contract including product hire, maintenance, storage and removal as well as the lighting installations themselves. The council's spending on Christmas lights also goes towards local high streets across the city which the town hall says helps attract visitors.

Some councils, including in Greater Manchester, do not spend any money on Christmas lights with festive decorations in public spaces funded by the local community and businesses. Very few councils in the UK now pay celebrities to switch on the lights.

Manchester Council's executive member for skills, employment and leisure, Councillor John Hacking, said: "The core budget requirement for our Christmas lights is met from income generated through commercial events and activity in our venues and public spaces across the year. As a city we work hard year-round on attracting visitors to Manchester with tourists and other visitors providing a massive boost to our economy.

"The run-up to Christmas is no different and our festive lights, along with our legendary Christmas markets and our magical Christmas Parade are a huge draw, bringing in millions of visitors every year. Our festive lighting scheme also extends beyond the city centre into local high streets across Manchester where it's welcomed by businesses big and small for helping attract much-needed visitors and customers."