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21
Jun
Mayor Watch: Nimbys, cabinet shake-up and running the bed race
Each month, the Stray Ferret analyses the activity of the Mayor of York and North Yorkshire, David Skaith, and his deputy mayor for policing, Jo Coles.
We look at their decisions, their public and online presence and their use of money by both politicians.
In June, a report into a tourist tax —which Mr Skaith supports — was published which concluded that any levy must be simple.
Mr Skaith also had a reshuffle of his team and appointed a new deputy mayor and lead for climate change.
Here is what else we found after analysing their online presence.
York and North Yorkshire mayor David Skaith
David Skaith, Mayor of York and North Yorkshire
What did he do?
On June 4, Mr Skaith welcomed Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer to York to show him around a major development in York Central, which will see 2,500 new home sand 1 million square feet of office space built.
Meanwhile, on June 10, both Mr Skaith and Ms Coles released a statement on receiving £3.2 million in government funding to tackle wildifres.
Mr Skaith said last summers fire in Flyingdales and Langdale moor was “devastating” and called for lessons to be learned from the blaze.
The Labour mayor took to Knaresborough on June 13 to take part in the Great Knaresborough Bed Race.
Running as part of the York and North Yorkshire Combined Authority team, Mr Skaith finished 70th of 90 in a time of 21 minutes and 33 seconds.
In a post on his Facebook page, Mr Skaith declared that the team would be back next year.
David Skaith (left) with the York and North Yorkshire Combined Authority team at the Knaresborough Bed Race.
Mr Skaith paid tribute to Jo Cox on the 10th anniversary of the MP's death on June 16.
On the same day, the Labour mayor called for people to put “nimbyism” to one side in a Facebook post calling for new homes to be built in rural towns and villages.
Mr Skaith claimed that if new houses were not built in those areas “they will die”.
In a statement issued by the combined authority, the Labour mayor was also confirmed as an advisor to Active Travel England on June 16.
The role will see the mayor support the delivery of the government’s aim to have 60% of children walk, wheel or cycle to school by 2035 and ncrease the proportion of short journeys in towns and city to walking or cycling.
On June 18, Mr Skaith posted a picture of him campaigning in Makerfield for Labour candidate, Andy Burnham, ahead of a by-election in the constituency.
What decisions did he make?
On June 5, Mr Skaith appointed new members to his top team on the combined authority.
Cllr Claire Douglas, Labour leader of City of York Council, was appointed as his new deputy mayor and Cllr Jenny Kent, a Labour councillor who represents Holgate on City of York Council, was appointed to the newly created portfolio holder for environment and climate change on the combined authority.
What else?
The Stray Ferret asked the combined authority if it had anything further it wished to add to Mr Skaith’s activity.
In a statement, the mayor said:
There has been a great deal of reflection on the devastating wildfires of last summer. With the fire initially started by someone believed to have been cooking using a naked flame, I’m calling on all supermarkets to stop the sale of disposable barbecues in our county and am backing national calls for an all-out ban.
As I’ve said, the response from firefighters, farmers, landowners, volunteers and local communities to the incident at Fylingdales Moor was outstanding, but we cannot rely on goodwill alone. There are lessons to be taken, including stronger resilience, better coordination and a more robust approach to preventing, responding to and recovering from major wildfires. In a joint letter with Deputy Mayor for Policing, Fire and Crime, Jo Coles, we’ve written to the chair of the North Yorkshire Local Resilience Forum with our questions and observations about the incident and shared this publicly.
Helping people walk, wheel and cycle more is one of my key priorities, and this month marked an important step forward. Following the publication of the government’s new Cycling and Walking Investment Strategy, I was appointed as an Advisor to the Active Travel England Board. This gives our county a stronger voice at the national table and the opportunity to help shape investment, so it delivers real benefits for local communities.
One of the strategy’s goals is for 60% of children to walk, wheel or cycle to school by 2035. We’re already seeing great work towards that ambition in Harrogate, where I’m proud to support Yorkshire Causeway Schools Trust with a £52,000 grant from my Active Travel Fund. The funding will help expand access to bikes through a larger bike library, while growing successful initiatives such as bike buses and park and stride schemes at schools including Oatlands Infant School.
It's great to see my Vibrant and Sustainable High Streets Fund supporting a number of events held by Harrogate International Festivals. This included Luminarium, a spectacular walk-through sensory installation filled with light, colour and calm. I’m proud to support events like this, which are helping to reinvigorate our county’s high streets as thriving community spaces.
Jo Coles
Jo Coles, Deputy Mayor for Policing
What did she do?
On June 12, Ms Coles joined North Yorkshire Police on its Operation Tornado initiative in York and Selby, which aims to “disrupt crime” in towns across the county.
The deputy mayor said additional patrols had been put on in the towns to help “keep people safe”.
Ms Coles welcomed new technology to support victims and witnesses in York and North Yorkshire on June 15.
The new system allows people to give evidence without travelling to a distant courthouse, following the closure of Northallerton Magistrates Court in 2019.
Ms Coles held an online public meeting into the performance of North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue on June 18.
The meeting aimed to scrutinise the service’s performance and included an in-depth discussion on water safety.
What decisions did she make?
Ms Coles made no formal decisions in June, according to the Office for Policing, Fire and Crime transparency details. Her last one was on May 13.
What else?
On the Office for Policing, Fire, Crime and Commissioning website, personal expenses for Ms Coles are published monthly.
Ms Coles made no personal expenses claims for June. The most recent data available is for March, which you can read about here.
The Stray Ferret approached York and North Yorkshire Combined Authority to ask if it had anything further it wished to add to Ms Coles’ activity.
She said:
Over the last two years, I have been focused on ensuring that York and North Yorkshire are safe places for everyone who lives, works and visits us here. As well as looking at the new measures we can deliver, I have also been ensuring past commitments are delivered. This month, I'm delighted that the Live Link system in Northallerton is finally operational, enabling witnesses to take part in proceedings remotely helping to maintain access to justice. The court closed many years ago now but as part of that closure it had been agreed that there would be a live link. I have ensured there now is. Access to justice in a county is as rural as ours is essential not optional and I will continue to press for facilities for both victims and witnesses to be available as widely as possible.
We have also just received the debrief from the Fylingdales / Langdale fire last year and I have carefully scrutinised both the fire and rescue service debrief as well as the wider partnership response from the North Yorkshire Local Resilience Forum. I am determined to ensure I do everything we can to keep people safe in our region, including from the threats of climate related incidents like wildfires.
I continue to visit projects and work taking place across the region, including projects supported through the community fund, supporting our neighbourhood policing teams and working with partners to improve road safety in our region too.
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