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By ROB PARSONS - August 18 2022
For something a little different in today's newsletter, let's start with a little poetry. Your Northern Agenda writer's eye was caught by a story about a moving poem centred around the River Tyne which has appeared on the side of a derelict Newcastle nightspot.
The mysterious Geordie-inspired piece of artwork, whose hopeful words hint at a bright future for the city, is already attracting the attention of passers-by. Have a read of the poem in our GIF here.
Instagram handle '@thewritingisonthewall.art' has been written beneath the verse, with the account saying that the aim of the poet behind the work is to "animate urban locations with thoughts, words, deeds and a bucket of paste."
And as Sophie Brownson writes for ChronicleLive, the former Stereo Bar is a fitting location of the art, as the building has been ever-present across many decades as the city and the River Tyne transformed around it.
While this anonymous poem may be laden with hope, in the present the economic situation in Newcastle remains tough.
Its rate of 8.6% is more than three times higher than that of York Outer and is the sixth highest in the country, as David Dubas-Fisher of Reach's Data Unit reports. South Shields has the second highest unemployment rate of any constituency in the North at 8.4%.
The figures are the latest to show how employment rates in the North East lag behind the rest of the country. The average economic inactivity rate for those aged 16 to 64 is currently 24.9% for the North East, above the national figure of 21.4%
Marianne O’Sullivan policy manager at the North East England Chamber of Commerce said: “We need to reduce the levels of economic inactivity in the region which will also help to tackle some of the labour shortages businesses are facing. Closing the gap to the national averages will be one of the key measures of success for the next Government.”
'Sheffield, not Whitehall, should decide fate of John Lewis building'
Built for city department store Cole Brothers in 1963, the Sheffield city centre building taken over by John Lewis 20 years ago is a renowned local landmark.
Its closure during the pandemic was greeted with anger and grief by customers and staff, also prompting a fierce debate about what the building should be used for.
But a major spanner has been thrown into the works by Historic England, which has granted the site in Barker's Pool Grade-II listed status, meaning alterations and building work can't be carried out without written consent from the relevant authorities.
Sheffield City Council has already had around 16 expressions of interest in developing the site. But as Local Democracy Reporter Julia Armstrong reports companies may now withdraw their interest given that it will take demolition off the table and will hugely complicate and increase the cost of any development plans.
Council leader Terry Fox said the decision had been "dropped" on the city with no consideration of local opinion.
He added: “I am not saying this site isn’t of some heritage value – and it may be that whatever comes next does indeed utilise the current building – but ultimately it should be for Sheffield to decide what best to do with the site. Not some official in Whitehall or Minister in Parliament."
Bus drivers' 'huge, historic victory' in pay row with Arriva
Things looked bleak for the prospect of the long-running Arriva North West bus strike ending when yesterday's newsletter went out as union members resoundingly voted to reject an improved 9.6% increase to their pay.
But just a few hours later in what was hailed as a huge, historic victory for the striking workers, the company offered an improved deal of 11.1%. The strike across Cheshire, Lancashire, Manchester and Merseyside, which has been going for 30 days, has now been suspended while unions vote on the offer.
GMB union organiser George Patterson said: “After weeks of unnecessary industrial action, Arriva bosses have finally come back with an offer that meets GMB members expectations."
Liam Thorp writes for the Liverpool Echo today: "This is not just a victory that will be celebrated across Merseyside - where support has remained strong for the bus drivers despite the difficulties many have faced - but all over, and particularly on the growing number of picket lines appearing across the country."
Those picket lines include the nation's railway stations, where around one in five trains were running across the country today because of another walkout by members of the RMT and TSSA unions.
Speaking this morning, Network Rail chief executive Andrew Haines argued that an 8% pay rise is a “good offer” despite it falling short of inflation.
He told ITV’s Good Morning Britain: “The harsh challenge we’ve got in the railway system is we’ve only got three sources of funding. The taxpayer will pay more than 50% of the railway, fares or making our system more efficient.”
Challenged that bus operator Arriva has given its workers an 11% pay rise, Mr Haines said: “They’re not part of the rail system. It’s a bus company, it’s a private bus company and their funding arrangements will be dealt with locally."
Elsewhere on the railways, under-fire operator Avanti West Coast was already struggling to provide a service from London to the North West due to “unofficial strike action” by drivers.
But it reached a new low on Tuesday as passengers were reportedly stranded in a locked station in Cumbria after their train arrived 100 minutes late. About 30 passengers got off the service from London Euston to Glasgow at Oxenholme to find the station closed, the BBC reports.
Westmorland Lib Dem MP Tim Farron said it was an "unacceptable farce". Avanti has apologised and said it was investigating what happened.
Drag queen children's reading event disrupted by protesters
Police were called to Bolton yesterday as a group of protestors stormed the Town Hall during a Drag Queen children's book reading event. Drag Queen Story Hour UK, who have been touring venues across the country, perform interactive shows for young children and their families.
The event at the Albert Halls in Bolton had sold out, with many families taking their little ones to the performance. But they were greeted by a handful of demonstrators, many of which were holding signs, including one which read "Stop drag queens reading to our kids."
As well as around 50 protesters taking a stand against the drag performance, witnesses told James Holt of the Manchester Evening News that there was also a smaller number of counter protestors outside the venue.
Pictures from the scene show police and tactical aid officers in attendance as families tried to make their way inside. One witness said that 'most of the protest was peaceful' and that groups of people were stood outside the town centre venue holding up signs.
Author Aida H Dee, known as 'The Storytime Drag Queen', was also due to read in Rochdale, Middleton and Heywood however Rochdale Council said it had to postpone the shows, which have seen protests in other areas, following a risk assessment.
Standing desks ‘could cut sitting time by an hour a day’
Are you sitting down? Well perhaps you shouldn't be - or at least not all the time. A new study of local government workers in Liverpool and Greater Manchester suggests using a standing desk helps reduce sedentary behaviour among staff.
Previous studies have shown that office-based staff spend about 73% of their work day and 66% of their waking day sitting. As a result some companies have opted to buy height-adjustable desks for staff and sit-stand desks have grown in popularity.
To assess the impact of such desks, along with workplace interventions to encourage more movement, academics led by the University of Leicester decided to perform a study on 756 local government workers.
When given a height-adjustable desk as well as access to the other office-based interventions, people reduced their average daily sitting time for 64 minutes a day.
Could freeport pave the way for Singapore-on-Humber?
There's a fascinating piece on the HullLive website today on the past, present and future of the Humber Freeport, one of three new areas in the North established by then-Chancellor Rishi Sunak where firms will benefit from tax breaks and simplified customs procedures.
Thanks to the new policy all four main ports on the Humber estuary have been identified as customs zones where both port operators and companies will be able to defer tax duty and import VAT on goods.
But as political reporter Angus Young writes, the scheme is now coming under renewed scrutiny with some claiming it could eventually lead to the area becoming a self-governing maritime city-state.
Is the ultimate vision something like 'Singapore-on-the-Humber', following the example of the Southeast Asian city state which as a Charter City was allowed to become a self-governing entity with few tax and economic regulations, no minimum wage legislation and no social benefits?
The current debate on freeports is being shaped by a 2010 blog on the TaxPayers' Alliance website championing the idea which it said "would attract entrepreneurs and private investment on an unprecedented scale".
Many say it would take a leap of imagination for it to become reality but in a post-Brexit world where the two current Tory leadership contenders are pledging more deregulation in expanded economic zones some are now starting to wonder, Angus writes. Reacting to a post on the issue on Twitter, city council leader Mike Ross said: "Came up in a meeting today. General view was this was not something we would welcome!"
Not far away on the East Yorkshire coast, a row was brewing this morning as Liz Truss was accused of signing off the closure of the UK’s biggest gas storage facility as ministers now rush to reopen the facility before winter.
The Rough natural gas storage facility is set to reopen within weeks, amid concerns over the country’s gas reserves in future winters, as Mason Boycott-Owen reports for The Yorkshire Post.
Labour have said that the closure would have been one of Tory leadership frontrunner Ms Truss’ first acts as Chief Secretary to the Treasury in 2017, after cost and safety concerns were raised.
Allies of Ms Truss last night stressed that she would not have been involved in key discussions involving the closure prior to her appointment, with the decision coming only days after she stepped into the role.
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Northern Stories
Wirral Council has cancelled planned donkey rides after objections by a community group over animal welfare. The donkey rides were due to take place as part of the New Brighton Summer Festival on the bank holiday weekend from August 24 to 28. But the move had received criticism from some organisations who were unhappy with animals being used in this way.
North Yorkshire county council was accused of furthering a “power grab” as it appointed its own chief executive to take the reins of a new unitary authority. Chief executive Richard Flinton will oversee the new council when the current system of district and county authorities is scrapped next year. His appointment to the £180,000 to £197,000 salary role was applauded by councillors but independent John McCartney said residents would be getting “government of the many by the few”.
Visions of a huge tower that could have been built at the mouth of the Ouseburn in Newcastle have been heavily scaled back under new plans unveiled by developers. There was a public backlash to a proposed 18-storey apartment block earmarked for the vacant Malmo Quay site after dramatic designs were revealed last year, with locals branding the scheme a “monstrosity”. But the 223ft landmark has now been axed in favour of a “more modest” building after developer PfP-igloo promised to redraw its proposals.
Trade union Unite is launching a series of billboards in battleground Northern parliamentary seats with the aim of “driving the political agenda” amid the growing cost-of-living crisis. The billboards will have the message: “Who is responsible for the crisis?” Unite said it wanted to unify workers and local communities after the “failure” of politicians to act. The first billboards will appear in places including Grimsby, Hull, Leigh, Barrow, Workington and Morecambe.
Pollution warnings are in place at more 40 beaches and swimming spots in England and Wales, including Lancashire and Cumbria, after heavy rain overwhelmed the sewage system following months of little or no rain. Warnings are in place after the sudden change in weather. According to data collected by the environmental campaign group Surfers Against Sewage the south west and south coast of England were the worst affected.
Bolton council is to hand out £3m in Covid relief funds to dozens of firms despite them not applying for the cash. The Tory-run authority said ‘take up has been low’ for the Covid-19 Additional Relief Fund, a business rates relief fund of £5,697,827 which it got from central government. Awards totalling just £2,620,263 have been made to eligible firms and the remaining £3,077,564 will need to be returned to the Treasury if it is not distributed by September 30.
