In the midst of the Brexit obsession a poignant event took place in Bury recently. The council leader Rishi Shori, one of the best and the brightest of the next generation of council leaders, announced he was standing down.

He wasn't the subject of a party coup or a critical inspection report. In fact, under his leadership Bury had gone from being a relatively sleepy partner within Greater Manchester to an innovative borough which was able to respond positively to the challenges and opportunities presented both by austerity and devolution. Rishi himself led a groundbreaking investigation into community cohesion in Greater Manchester and was seen by many as a future contender for the mayoralty in Greater Manchester.