A senior Saddleworth councillor has sent a heartfelt letter to the leader of Oldham Council seeking support to name the borough’s new roads after those who have died in service to their country.
The letter from John McCann, councillor for Saddleworth South, to leader Jim McMahon, comes in the wake of the full life sentence for a man who murdered two Manchester police women and a soldier who was slain in a London street. 
Cllr McCann, who lives in Dobcross and is also OMBC’s shadow cabinet portfolio holder for finance and deputy leader of the Lib Dems, wrote: “I am often struck by the depth of respect for our armed services among residents of our borough.
“We have a long history of young men and women from the borough dedicating themselves to service in the armed forces. Sadly, there is an equally long history of Oldham servicemen and women being killed in action.
“I would like to propose Oldham Council names new streets after local men and women killed in military service as a meaningful and lasting way to show the value we place on those who have served and been lost.
“It may also be appropriate to include serving police and other emergency service officers killed in the line of duty,” he declared.
“This would, of course, have to be done in consultation with the families of those who have died. But I believe this would receive strong support from the local community, and would be a small but worthwhile gesture.”
Later, speaking from his home, Cllr McCann said: “It is not only for the many local men and women from our borough that have fought for our country, but also for those killed serving the people of the UK on the streets of the UK as evidenced so tragically recently.”
Jim McMahon, Oldham Council Leader, said in principle he agreed with the suggestion, adding: “As a council we are very proactive in ensuring the fallen are remembered in a fitting way and it’s a responsibility we take very seriously.
“We are currently in the second year of a refurbishment programme of all our war memorials to ensure they are better-maintained and accessible to the public.
“At present there is extensive repair work underway at the Oldham War Memorial and the conservation and digitisation of the Book of Remembrance.
“The move John McCann suggests will require a change in protocol, which will need discussion and agreement with all three group leaders first,” he added. “While I don’t want to prejudge that discussion, I suspect there will be broad support for it.”
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