Latest news with #LabourCouncil
BBC News
2 days ago
- Business
- BBC News
Plans to build 600 new homes near Yarm unveiled
Plans to build 600 new homes near a market town have been unveiled. Developer Taylor Wimpey is preparing an outline plan for the development on land south of Green Lane, in firm is holding a two-week consultation on the plans which include building two to five-bedroom homes, including up to 20% of affordable housing as well as homes to rent. Stockton West Conservative MP Matt Vickers said he was against the "barmy" development and there were already too many properties in the town. Taylor Wimpey says feedback from the consultation will shape the planning application which it intends to submit to Stockton Borough Council in the summer, the Local Democracy Reporting Service said. Vickers said: "The idea of building yet more housing in Yarm is utterly barmy."In recent years the Labour council has allowed the packing, stacking and racking of thousands of homes on green field sites and created unbearable pressure on our local infrastructure, from roads to schools to healthcare services. "We must ensure Yarm's unique character is preserved."The council said it could not comment on the proposals because it had not yet received a planning application. An exhibition event will be held at Yarm Sports and Social Club on Leven Road on Thursday between 15:00 and 19:00 BST. Follow BBC Tees on X, Facebook, Nextdoor and Instagram.
BBC News
5 days ago
- General
- BBC News
Plans to turn Gateshead's Colgate Primary School into SEN school
Plans to turn a closed primary school into a school for children with special educational needs (SEN) are taking a step Primary School in Felling, Gateshead, was transferred to the Cedars Trust to provide 180 places from academy organisation has applied to the council to expand the car park and widen its documents show the school is expecting a high number of children to arrive in vehicles, either with their parents and carers or by home-to-school transport provided by the local authority. The existing car access entrance from High Heworth Lane would be widened to allow for two-way traffic, the documents said, while pedestrian access would remain from Colegate comes after the Labour-led council decided to close the school in September last Primary had been dubbed the council's "most vulnerable school" in official documents, with a projected financial deficit of over £500,000 by 2025-26, according to the Local Democracy Reporting than 2,000 people signed a petition backing calls to keep it open. Follow BBC North East on X, Facebook, Nextdoor and Instagram.
BBC News
22-05-2025
- General
- BBC News
Hebburn flats to be demolished leaving Durham Court residents angry
Nearly 100 people living in a high-rise block of flats have been told their homes will be Tyneside Council's cabinet gave the go-ahead for Durham Court in Hebburn to be taken down, at a meeting on said the 1974-built block had outlived its "original intended lifespan" of 50 years and the estimated £12m needed to repair it was not living there - many of them elderly tenants - now face the upheaval of being rehomed over a possible five-year period. A number of those living in the building - which is seen as a landmark in the town - described the tower block as a "thriving community" of people "who all look after each other".Resident Peter Douglass said: "I know if I need any help it's right there in this building."That's a community and they're destroying it in one fell swoop."Widow Emily Rice, 94, who is partially-sighted, added: "My husband died and I've got no family - this was to be my last home, but the council in its wisdom has decided to turf me out." The Labour-led local authority has offered tenants reassurances that it will find new homes for them in Hebburn and they will not have to leave the leader Tracey Dixon said: "We will ensure right from the very beginning that the tenants that live in Durham Court will be given the homes of their choice."It's all about giving them priority, so if they want to continue living in Hebburn then they can." She added: "We know Durham Court is their family home, so we're here to support them and make sure they lead healthy and happy lives." Follow BBC North East on X, Facebook, Nextdoor and Instagram.
The Guardian
21-05-2025
- Politics
- The Guardian
First workers were disappointed in Labour – now they're angry. To understand why, visit Birmingham
Six months ago, it was a stirring, a mood felt in many workers' meetings, on picket lines and doorsteps. What started as disappointment in Labour is now giving way to anger for many British workers and their communities. 'Aren't Labour supposed to be for workers?' is a line I hear daily now. Most recently, this sentiment has been felt in Birmingham, where bin workers for the Labour-run city council have been on indefinite strike since 11 March. These workers woke up one morning to be told they would lose up to a quarter of their pay – what Unite believes to be up to £8,000. This is 'fire-and-rehire' by any other name. Bin lorry drivers are now being told they are next in line to lose the same amount in pay. What makes this scandal all the more egregious is that it is being perpetrated by a Labour council – enthusiastically backed by a Labour government. One bin worker said this government 'might be Labour in name, but it isn't Labour in nature'. That specific is mirrored in much more general conceptions. Labour voters can't believe that this government would, with almost its first act, cut the winter fuel allowance for pensioners, regardless of the U-turn it has now made. Then it attacked those on welfare benefits. Why would a Labour administration target some of the country's most vulnerable people instead of making the rich pay more, through a real wealth tax? Unite research shows that the assets of the richest 50 families in the UK are worth £500bn. That's more than the wealth of a third of Britain. A 1% tax on the richest 1% would raise £25bn. Labour in name but not in nature is right. And nothing is more symbolic of Labour's disconnection from its core mission than the catastrophe of the Birmingham bin strike. Angela Rayner, Labour MPs, and the leader of Birmingham city council, John Cotton, who incidentally has not attended one single negotiation on the bin strike, have spent weeks, if not months, demanding that our members should simply accept 'the fair and reasonable offer on the table'. The problem is there isn't one. I've seen this charade play out week after week since the strike began: Unite decision-makers are in the room with a group of council employees who clearly do not have the power to make any decisions. Hence, there have been no real negotiations and certainly no settlement of the dispute. When Acas conciliation was suggested, I said I would be there in person and that I expected the leader of the council to do the same. After all, he had said in public just days before that 'nobody needs to lose any pay' – surely we should have been in touching distance of a deal? But Cotton, once again, did not turn up to the talks, sending Joanne Roney, the managing director of the city council instead, who introduced herself as a decision-maker. I asked for a copy of the 'fair and reasonable offer', but yet again, none was produced. Both Rayner and Cotton have cited lump sums in the thousands being put on the table, together with moves that would result in no loss of pay. None of this was seen at Acas. Nonetheless, the talks began, and a 'ballpark' deal was discussed, one that could finally be taken back to workers to ballot. That was on the 6 May. Roney said she would send a written draft by 8 May, but at the time of writing, we have yet to receive the offer. A simple written offer dictating terms. So why the delay? The government's own commissioners – who have been in place since just after the council effectively declared itself bankrupt in 2023 – are now apparently blocking the deal, despite Rayner previously claiming central government has 'no part in the decision-making of the dispute'. Roney is reportedly being prevented from putting in writing what we discussed at conciliation unless they agree to it. Of course, this is what Unite has been saying all along: Birmingham city council's decision-makers are simply not in the room. In 35 years of negotiating huge disputes, I have never seen such a shambles. Our members can see through Labour's spin. How can a Labour council be doing this to their own workers? What happened to the 'change' promised by Starmer? Make no mistake, these workers have the full backing of Unite. Losing up to a quarter of their pay means many won't be able to pay mortgages or rent, or cover other basic living costs. This cannot be allowed to happen. How can a Labour council and a Labour government preside over these pay cuts and say with a straight face that they are the party of workers? The recent local election results are a warning to Labour that the anger is becoming more widespread. The party needs to change course; driving 'further and faster' while you are heading for a cliff doesn't usually end well. Sharon Graham is the general secretary of Unite
The Sun
18-05-2025
- Politics
- The Sun
‘Woke' Labour council to be twinned with Palestinian city run by Hamas
A LABOUR council is to be twinned with a Palestinian city run by Hamas. The London Borough of Brent was warned the bizarre move risks 'appeasing terrorist organisations'. 2 The Labour -led local authority voted last week in favour of partnering with Nablus in the West Bank. Tory councillor Michael Maurice said he is 'very concerned' as the city's governing council has 15 members who are part of Hamas, including the mayor. The idea was tabled by Labour councillor Ihtesham Afzal, who said he wanted Palestinian kids to 'dream of a brighter future'. However one Jewish man who lives in the North West London borough told The Sun: 'This must be the wokest council in Britain. "It is so odd. I can't believe they would think this would be OK. "I think it shows they have a lack of priorities. 'They seem more concerned about what is going on over there when they should be more concerned about what is going on closer to home.' Council leader Mo Butt said 2,000 people signed a report on the twinning so it 'meets the threshold' to be taken forward. 2
