Latest news with #InnovateCambridge
BBC News
13-04-2025
- Politics
- BBC News
Cambridgeshire and Peterborough mayor reflects on mayoralty
A health scare, an apology, council tax rises and major changes to public transport. The last four years have been a professional and personal challenge for the departing Mayor of Cambridgeshire and Peterborough, Nik Johnson. He won the mayoralty for the Labour Party in 2021. However, the 55-year-old has decided not to seek re-election this year due to concerns about his has been speaking to the BBC's Politics East programme about his time in office. Vision Zero As I meet Johnson, he has a little black book that he flicks through to tell me about some of the things he's achieved in his four years as charities, small businesses, safer cycling partnerships and the setting up of Innovate Cambridge are amongst the things he muses also passionate about his involvement in Vision Zero, a campaign to end road wears a badge in memory of Mike Gough, a cyclist who died after a collision with a van last year. Johnson, who is also a consultant paediatrician, described road deaths as "a public health challenge". We take a walk to the nearby Guided Busway, where he tells me that signing the bus franchising agreement, which will see these services brought under the control of the combined authority and the taxpayer, is his "biggest achievement". He also introduced the Tiger pass which allows children and young people under the age of 25 to travel for £1 per combined authority also stepped in to run many rural routes which commercial operators stopped running as they weren't profitable. To pay for it he introduced a mayoral precept on council tax, which is £36 per year for a band D property, a tax rise that wasn't popular with everyone. "We've got a real sense of purpose with more people using buses around the whole of the area," he explained."That's meant people look at public transport in a different way" Rocky patch It hasn't been an easy time for Johnson as he took on the role of mayor."I'm on record as apologising for things that have happened along the way," he tells me, as I ask about any regrets he was accused but later cleared of bullying, in relation to things that happened as he took control at the government even issued a Best Value Notice - where ministers intervene - as they had concerns about the culture at the cleared of bullying, Johnson was found to have breached civility and disrepute rules and he apologised for this publicly."I regret having been the cause of upset and apologise unreservedly to those for whom I gave reason to complain," he said at the time. Reflecting on that period he admitted "it was difficult" and he regrets "not getting the improvement team in quick enough".However, he maintains that he inherited an organisation that was "on life support" and had "huge discrepancy in good governance" and "financial irregularity". Health scare In November 2022, Johnson took a three-month break from the job as he underwent heart surgery. It was discovered he had an underlying condition but he said "the stress of the job undoubtedly made me more unwell".However, he said he was "determined to come back" and finish the job. He did initially tell BBC Radio Cambridgeshire in November that he intended to stand for re-election, but he ultimately decided a second term would be "one step too far".As the electorate of Cambridgeshire and Peterborough prepare to vote for his successor, I ask him if he has any personal quotes a mantra he talked about when elected: "Compassion, co-operation and community, the three C's.""Anybody coming in, no matter what their political party, if they continue along that narrative of compassion, they will find the co-operation and we all, as a community, will benefit." BBC Politics East will be broadcast on Sunday 12 January at 10:00 GMT on BBC One in the East of England, and will be available after broadcast on BBC iPlayer. Follow Cambridgeshire news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X.
BBC News
09-04-2025
- Health
- BBC News
Cambridge entrepreneurs pledge wealth to tackle city's inequality
With its university spires and world-leading science sector, many believe life in Cambridge is one of privilege and wealth, but it is one of the most unequal cities in the UK. Innovate Cambridge, an initiative launched in 2022, has founded The Cambridge Pledge, a project that aims to improve the lives of people in the city who are homeless, living in poverty or in the care system. The scheme encourages entrepreneurs to offer a share of their current or future wealth to fund social projects in the area. Sara Allen, the executive director of The Cambridge Pledge, says: "We want to fund children's homes, support for care leavers, projects to help the homeless and education projects in Cambridge and the wider county." Lucy Jung is a design engineer who has pledged a percentage of her future wealth via The Cambridge Pledge. She says: "I see the inequality in Cambridge every day. Our office is in the middle of the city and as we leave at night, there are homeless people who are really struggling - that is not something we should pass by."For the past ten years the mother-of-two has been living with a brain tumour. She says: "Ten years ago I was at university, and very excited about the innovations that we were working on. I started to get strange symptoms which affected my vision and balance. "Very quickly I got diagnosed with a brain tumour. They were able to take away a portion of the tumour but not all, and so I still rely on regular check-ups."In 2019 she co-founded Charco Neurotech Ltd, which developed a device to reduce rigidity in people with Parkinson's Disease. She adds: "[My brain tumour] keeps me grounded and it means I can understand health issues from a tech point of view but also as a patient."Ms Jung has since founded Lyeons Neurotech, which is developing solutions for people with anxiety and sleep disorders."[My tumour] has given me the drive to help as many people as possible and if I can do more through the Pledge, that's a real privilege. It was a no-brainer for me to contribute. "When I started doing school-runs I could see life outside of the university and institutions. "Being part of the Pledge makes me want to work harder so I can help." Marcel Gehrung is chief executive and the co-founder of Cyted Health in Cambridge, which developed the capsule sponge to help diagnose oesophageal cancer."When I first heard about the Pledge my first thought was 'why hasn't this been done before?'. "I grew up in a working-class environment in Germany, but I was just fortunate to be in the right place, at the right time. "I want to back the Pledge because I don't think some things should be left to chance. I want other young people to have the opportunities I did."I never really thought about what I'd do if I achieved success, I was just focused on the next step, but being part of this has changed my perspective on why I do what I do. "It's too easy in this environment to be detached from what the Pledge can mean to people and what it can achieve in the real world and I want to visit as many of the projects as possible," he says. Ms Allen says: "Some entrepreneurs are able to give money now, and that's what we're investing and will begin spending this year. Others are building their success and have pledged a percentage of their future wealth. "It's a risk, because not all entrepreneurial ventures work out, but then some become 'unicorns' [a privately owned company valued at more than $1bn]. "If you look at the overall success of Cambridge, I think we can be confident that we'll achieve something very special. "Many of those who're pledging are young people, in their 30s, who've gone into the medical field. "Their motivation wasn't making themselves wealthy. They've done it to improve people's lives and what became clear to me is that they're backing the pledge as an extension of that."We're talking to local councils and the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Combined Authority to identify needs and make sure our investments compliment plans and projects to tackle inequality."Robert Pollock, the chief executive of Cambridge City Council, said: "The Cambridge Pledge is a great way to connect the wealth created by entrepreneurs and start-up founders with practical projects that can make a huge and lasting difference in our local communities. "I'm very grateful for the generosity and civic commitment of our pledgers and would love to see more business leaders stepping forward." Follow Cambridgeshire news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X.
