'People are coming and shouting at us': the battle over the soul of Market Street

Danny, 29, sells sweetcorn on Market Street and admits he has "a very big problem" to deal with.

He is president of the Market Street traders WhatsApp group and is worried about how TikTokers and YouTubers are operating in the area. His sweetcorn stall was recently targeted by someone recording with glasses that had a small camera inside. He did not know he was being filmed.

"In the last two months we've been facing a very big problem," he said. "People are coming and taking videos, shouting at us, and now there's a petition against us. In the last three or four years I've never had any problems."

Danny, who came to the UK from Pakistan to study his master's degree, pulls out his licence from Manchester City Council. "We have all our licences, the council have been here and checked three times, we have a five-star hygiene rating," he said.

"But some people are coming and shouting abuse at us. We're not British but we came here legally, we studied here and got work visas, but we couldn't find jobs, so we started this small stall business."

He employs more than 20 part-time workers and supports two or three families. "If we earn £100 a day that's a lot of money for us, but people are making movies about us and shouting at us. Yesterday someone came and was shouting abuse, harassing us, telling us to go away, and he hit the sweetcorn cart."

What is the petition about?

A petition with more than 550 signatures is calling on Manchester City Council to review the management of Market Street and Piccadilly Gardens. It raises concerns about amplified sound, public preaching, temporary stalls reducing pedestrian space, and "sensory overload."

The petitioners suggest designated locations for organised activities and "reasonable controls on amplified sound."

What do people on Market Street think?

Linda, 73, has worked on a food van on Market Street for three and a half years. She was having none of it: "I don't think it needs changing, maybe just cleaning it up a little bit. There's nothing wrong with Market Street. It would be nice to see a bit more police about."

Solomon Purnell, 16, films football content on Market Street and described it as "actually quite a nice place to be." He added: "There's probably the most footfall here, you get the Christmas markets here, everyone loves it really. It's unique."

Charlotte Badenoch, 28, from Cornwall, said: "It's very hectic, it can be really lively, it can be fun, but can be very busy, loud and overstimulating." Her mum Gail Christophers, 57, visiting for the first time, smiled and said: "It's very busy, yes, nothing like we've got in Cornwall."

What has the council said?

Councillor Garry Bridges, interim leader at Manchester City Council, said: "We don't want to lose the vibrancy of these areas, but decisions on whether to seek more powers are always finely balanced between the desire to maintain an orderly area that everyone can enjoy and the council being overly restrictive about people's freedom to perform, gather and protest."

He added: "We are always mindful that clamping down on one type of activity can often have unintended consequences. However, there is a case to be made for more intervention if it can be achieved sensibly."

Danny, the sweetcorn trader, had the last word: "I saw people coming from Liverpool to see us, people saying how Market Street is wonderful. We see people singing, dancing, showing