Calvin Robinson Chief Reporter, Author at The Stray Ferret

73 new coronavirus cases in Harrogate district as second lockdown looms

The Harrogate district recorded another 73 coronavirus infections today as the country prepares for another lockdown.

The daily figures from Public Health England show cases since the start of the pandemic have now increased to 2,623.

It comes as England prepares to enter a second national lockdown at midnight.

Meanwhile, the district’s seven-day case rate stands at 252 per 100,000 which is above the national average of 228.

This morning, it was confirmed that Harrogate District Hospital is currently treating 15 coronavirus patients.

It was also announced today that the district will be part of a local test and trace system from next week.

It comes amid reports the current national programme for test and trace is only managing to reach about 60% of those who have come into close contact with a positive case.

‘Momentous’ single council proposal for North Yorkshire submitted

North Yorkshire County Council has agreed to submit plans to create a new single local authority for the county to ministers.

County councillors voted for the move today, signalling the start of the biggest shake-up of local government in North Yorkshire for decades.

However, the seven district and borough councils will also vote on submitting alternative proposals to ministers.

At the county council’s meeting this morning, 57 councillors voted in favour of submitting the bid and 11 against.

It included “dual hatted” councillors, who sit on both district and the county councils, who will also vote on the districts’ proposal for an east/west model.

Robert Jenrick, secretary of state for local government, will decide on the government’s preferred option.

Whichever proposal he chooses, it will result in both the county council and the district and borough councils, including Harrogate Borough Council, being scrapped and replaced by one or more single-tier authority.

‘Momentous decision’

Cllr Carl Les, leader of the county council, said the proposal for one council, which would cover 618,000 people, was among the most “momentous decisions” the authority has made.

He said the government regarded devolution as part of its plan for recovery from the covid pandemic.

North Yorkshire County Council leader, Carl Les.

Cllr Les said:

“The government sees two parts to covid. Firstly contain and secondly recovery.

“They see devolution and local government reform as key parts of that recovery process and delivering the levelling up agenda.

“This is so the right time to do this and to get prepared for future challenges.”

He added that there would be “no criticism” of other models and that it would be for ministers to decide the best proposal for the county.

The proposal has received support from City of York Council, which would remain as a unitary authority under the plan.

But opposition councillors on the county council opposed the move.

Cllr Stuart Parsons, leader of the North Yorkshire independents group, said it was not “the right time” for local government reform.

He said:

“I think central government needs to get to grips with what is going on in our country rather than rearranging deck chairs.”

Cllr Eric Broadbent, leader of the Labour group, said creating a single authority for the county would be “a step too far”.

£38 million cost of shake-up

In its outline plan, the county council said reorganisation of councils in the county could cost up to £38 million.

Consultants Pricewaterhouse Cooper’s report on the plans revealed that setting up a single authority will cost between £18 million and £38 million.

However, the authority also predicts savings of up to £252 million over five years, equivalent to £50.4 million per year.

The district councils ware set to submit an east/west model as a counter proposal to the county council.

Harrogate Borough Council will vote on the plan this evening.

Ministers have set a deadline of December 9 for full proposals to be submitted.

1,300 coronavirus cases in Harrogate district in October

More than 1,300 coronavirus infections were confirmed in the Harrogate district in October.

Analysis of Public Health England data for the month shows there were 1,353 positive tests in the district and four deaths at Harrogate District Hospital.

The number of infections is more than half of the 2,502 cases since the start of the pandemic.

Daily cases peaked at 83 on October 28, which represented the highest daily increase in the district.

The rate of daily increases in the Harrogate district throughout October. Data: Public Health England. Graph: the Stray Ferret.

The rate of daily increases and deaths in the Harrogate district throughout October. Data: Public Health England. Graph: the Stray Ferret.

However, the district also saw its first permanent coronavirus testing centre open last month which has capacity for up to 320 tests per day.

Today saw another 48 positive tests confirmed in the district.

Yesterday York Central MP and shadow minister, Rachael Maskell, said the turnaround for covid tests in the county was taking “far too long”. She said only 16% of tests were being returned after 24 hours.

Meanwhile, the weekly case rate in the district stands at 252 per 100,000 people, which is still above the national average.

It comes as Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced a second national lockdown in England from Thursday.

The measure will see non-essential shops, pubs and gyms close.

North Yorkshire covid tests taking ‘far too long’, says MP

Coronavirus test results in North Yorkshire are taking “far too long”, according to a shadow minister.

Rachael Maskell, Labour MP for York Central and shadow minister for digital, culture, media and sport, told the House of Commons yesterday only 16% of test results in North Yorkshire were being returned after 24 hours.

She added 60 per cent were returned in 48 hours and 96% after 72 hours, quoting figures from North Yorkshire Local Resilience Forum, which is a partnership of organisations that tackles emergencies in the county.

Ms Maskell told MPs during the covid debate:

“That is too long to wait to lock down the virus.

“If we could process those tests locally—test locally and process locally—we could have the results overnight.”

Ms Maskell said a localised system of public health, rather than the current service provided by Serco under contract from the Department of Health and Social Care, would provide a quicker and more effective response. She said:

“A quick response is key to getting on top of the virus—testing quickly, contact tracing quickly and isolating the virus quickly.”

‘We recognise there is more to be done’

The Stray Ferret asked the DHSC to respond to Ms Maskell.

It referred us to comments last week from Baroness Dido Harding, interim executive chair of the National Institute for Health Protection, which acknowledged turnaround times could be better.

Baroness Harding said:

“As the number of cases rise, we are seeing NHS test and trace processing more tests and reaching more people than ever before.

“We are expanding the reach of our service and improving performance in key areas such as turnaround times for tests as we continue to increase capacity, but we recognise there is more to be done.”

A permanent coronavirus testing centre was set up in the Harrogate District last month.

The Dragon Road site, which is managed by Serco, is capable of carrying out up to 320 tests per day and operates seven days a week.

A Serco spokesperson said:

“Serco does manage the test site but we do not manage the processing of the tests and the results, or the laboratories. That is all managed by others.”

Harrogate and Ripon self-employed angry and fearful of second lockdown

Self-employed businesses in the Harrogate district have expressed fears for their future ahead of a second national lockdown.

Two local business owners told the Stray Ferret they had just started to see work return after the first lockdown only to be told that the country will shutdown again on Thursday.

Hannah Ruddy, whose business Musicality Kids provides music classes for children in Harrogate, said she spent £1,500 on making her classes covid-secure only to now see her work cancelled.

Ms Ruddy added she and many other self-employed people had received no support since the start of the pandemic.

She was among those who were denied a discretionary grant of up to £10,000 in September because she did not have business premises.

Now she is concerned about the impact of another lockdown:

“I’m worried because I do not know where the money is going to come from and if I’m going to have to borrow again.

“I’m concerned about the communication and clarity about how long this is going to go on for.

“But, most of all, I’m angry at the lack of support for a large proportion of the self employed.”

‘No idea if we will survive’

Jennie Eyres, who runs a teacher training business in Ripon, has also received no financial support.

Besides her teaching business, Ms Eyres also runs a magazine that publicises activities for children.

Although she has had some work from schools, her businesses face uncertainty as lockdown looms.

She said:

“I still do not get any support and one business is severely hampered because the companies I work with are in the leisure and entertainment industries.”

Ms Eyres said it was the worry of “not knowing from one week to next” where work was going to come from which affected her the most.

She added she was fortunate her savings and her husband’s income had enabled her family to stay afloat during the pandemic.

When asked if she felt her businesses could survive a four-week lockdown, Jenny said:

“If it does go down, then we will have to tighten our belts and do something else. But I do not know, I literally have no idea.”

Furlough extension

The government announced an extension to the furlough scheme as part of the Prime Minister’s announcement on Saturday evening.

It will see the scheme extended to December and pay 80% of employee salaries up to £2,500 a month.

Yesterday, Rishi Sunak, Chancellor of the Exchequer, announced that the self-employed would be able to claim state aid of up to 80% of profits during the second lockdown.

Unions seek talks on future of council leisure staff

The trade union Unison is seeking urgent talks on the future of Harrogate Borough Council leisure and sports centre staff when venues close this week.

Leisure centres and gyms across the district will shut on Thursday following Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s announcement of a second lockdown in England.

Unison’s local government branch has asked to meet senior managers at the council to discuss the future of those affected.

Union officials said they will be seeking clarity on the futures of staff in sport, leisure and parks, as well as on whether the civic centre should remain open to visitors.

Many council staff, including leisure employees, were redeployed to other services during the spring lockdown to deal with extra demand.

David Houlgate, branch secretary at Unison Harrogate, said council staff had ‘gone the extra mile’ during the pandemic and there was a need to know what would happen to them. He said:

“We have worked tirelessly with the council through the pandemic and we remain hopeful that, provided appropriate health and safety protocols are maintained and followed, HBC will continue to deliver much needed services and support to residents and businesses in the district.”

A spokesperson for Harrogate Borough Council said:

“We are currently having discussions regarding staffing arrangements following the latest government restrictions.”

‘Upset and cynicism’ over October redundancies says Harrogate lawyer

A Harrogate employment lawyer says people who lost their jobs on the last day of October are upset and cynical.

Richard Port, principal solicitor at Boardside Ltd in Harrogate, said he was aware of cases where firms had put restructure plans in place for October 31, so will have lost staff on the same day the Prime Minister announced another lockdown and an extension to furlough.

The furlough scheme will see the government pay for 80% of employee salaries up to £2,500 a month. However, employers will have to cover pension and national insurance contributions.

The scheme was supposed to end on October 31, but now is going to end in early December.

Richard Port, Boardside Legal

Mr Port said some businesses will have met the announcement with surprise.

He said employees could return to their employer to ask for their jobs back, but most businesses have already made restructures due to the end of furlough.

Mr Port said:

“I think people are just disappointed. What they can do is go back to their employer and ask if they can take them back on.

“But I do not think many employers will want to do it.”

He added that the virus was taking its toll on all business.

“It is perfectly viable businesses that are shutting because of this. People are struggling to get their heads around it.

“The classic example is the pub. That is a part of our culture. It is a part of the British way of life and it is going.”

MPs watch: Free school meals, food safety and lockdowns

Every month the Stray Ferret tries to find out what our local MPs have been up to in their constituencies and in the House of Commons.

October saw a key vote on the government’s Agriculture Bill and a motion on free school meals following a high-profile campaign by Manchester United footballer Marcus Rashford.

We asked Harrogate & Knaresborough MP Andrew Jones, Ripon MP Julian Smith, and Selby and Ainsty MP Nigel Adams if they would like to highlight anything in particular that they have been doing this month, but we did not receive a response from any of them.

Here is what we know after analysing their online presence.

Andrew Jones, Harrogate and Knaresborough MP.

In Harrogate and Knaresborough, here is what we found on Mr Jones:

On October 5, Mr Jones voted with the government on the second reading of the Covert Human Intelligence Sources (Criminal Conduct) Bill. The bill looks to provide the power for covert intelligence sources to commit a criminal offence in their duty if necessary, according to the government website.
At Prime Minister’s Questions on October 7, Mr Jones urged Boris Johnson to give a support package to the conference sector. Jones said the the exhibition industry was “really important in Harrogate and Knaresborough”. However, the Prime Minister did not commit to any firm support.
On October 12, Mr Jones voted against an amendment to the Agriculture Bill which would have forced any future trade deal to meet UK food safety and animal welfare requirements. The vote came after demonstrators gathered outside his office in Harrogate urging him and other MPs to agree the amendment.
Mr Jones posted a plea on his website for people to wear a face mask when travelling on buses run by the Harrogate Bus Company. It was his only post throughout October.
On October 20, Mr Jones asked Secretary of State, Matt Hancock, whether a blanket national lockdown was wrong. Mr Hancock agreed that it was.
Mr Jones voted against an opposition motion to extend the provision of £15-a-week school meal vouchers throughout the October half term through to the Easter 2021 holidays. Following a backlash, Mr Jones responded in the local press and in a local Conservative news bulletin email. The email, which the Stray Ferret has seen, said: “I know that many of you will have seen the coverage about free school meals during the holidays in the news lately. I hope that people who know me, or who have been helped by me, would realise that I would not vote to increase child hunger or ensure children starve.”
Mr Jones’s Twitter account now been set to “retweets only”.

Julian Smith, MP for Ripon and Skipton.

In Ripon, here is what we found on Mr Smith:

Mr Smith voted in line with the government on the second reading of the Covert Human Intelligence Sources (Criminal Conduct) Bill on October 5.
Mr Smith posted a response on his website from Harrogate Borough Council on concerns over transport on October 16. It was his only post on the site throughout the month.
Mr Smith tweeted 11 times in October. He published two Facebook posts, one of which was a response from North Yorkshire CCG to the proposed 1,300-home Ripon Barracks scheme. Last night Mr Smith tweeted his support for the county council’s solution to care home visits.
On October 12, Mr Smith voted against the amendment to the Agriculture Bill.
Mr Smith spoke just twice in the House of Commons in October. His last contribution was on October 12 when he urged the Prime Minister to come up with “creative solutions” for loved ones to see relatives in care homes.
Mr Smith voted against the opposition motion on free school meals on October 21.

Nigel Adams, MP for Selby and Ainsty which includes rural Harrogate.

In rural south Harrogate, he is what we found on Mr Adams:

On October 5, Mr Adams tweeted that as Minister of State at the Foreign Office he spoke with Indonesia Deputy Foreign Minister, Mahendra Siregar, about how the two countries could work more closely together.
Mr Adams has tweeted 21 times in October.
Mr Adams voted against the amendment to the Agriculture Bill. In a post on his website, he defended his decision. He said: “Several people have been in touch who appear to have been misled into thinking that Tuesday’s vote on the Agriculture Bill was somehow a vote against our high food standards. This is not the case. In fact, the amendment to the bill which was defeated was well meaning but I believe unnecessary as well as having some negative unintended consequences.”
On October 15, Mr Adams tweeted that the UK would continue to support the Rohingya people who have “faced systemic brutality” and been forced to leave their homes.
Since the start of the month, Mr Adams has posted five times on his website. Posts include further funding for his constituency and coronavirus tier advice.
Mr Adams appeared in the House of Commons seven times in October to answer questions and make statements on such topics as Hong Kong National Security Law and the South China Sea.
Mr Adams voted against the opposition motion on free school meals on October 21.

A further 53 cases of coronavirus confirmed in Harrogate district

A further 53 cases of coronavirus have been confirmed in the Harrogate district, according to Public Health England figures.

It takes the total number of cases up to 2,300 since the start of the pandemic.

Meanwhile, the district’s seven-day case rate up to October 27 has dropped to 239 per 100,000 people. However this remains above the national average of 225.

Currently, 16 patients who have tested positive for coronavirus are being treated at Harrogate District Hospital, according to figures from the hospital trust.

Since the start of the pandemic, 219 covid patients have been treated and discharged, including 14 in the last week, while 86 people have died after testing positive for the virus.

North Yorkshire is now the only county in the region which has not been moved up to a higher local lockdown tier.

From Monday, West Yorkshire and Leeds will be moved into tier three.

However, Richard Webb, director of adult care at North Yorkshire County Council, warned on Wednesday that the county could enter tier two before the end of the week.

Harrogate district set to border tier three Leeds

The Harrogate district faces bordering a tier three area with the highest covid restrictions from next week.

Leeds, along with the rest of West Yorkshire, will enter the highest tier on Monday after cases in areas such as Bradford stand at 485 per 100,000 people.

It means that in Leeds betting shops, casinos and pubs which do not serve meals will close. Mixing of households will also be banned both indoors and outdoors.

But, across the border, pubs will remain open until 10am and people will be able to continue to meet indoors and outdoors while abiding by the rule of six.

North Yorkshire has avoided being moved into a tier two lockdown, despite only having a marginally lower infection rate than some areas which face tougher restrictions.

The county has a case rate of 174 per 100,000 population, according to latest Public Health England data. But North Lincolnshire has a rate of 194 and will enter tier two from Saturday.

Meanwhile, the Harrogate district currently has a seven-day case rate of 242, which is higher than the national average.

East Riding of Yorkshire and Hull will also enter “high risk” restrictions, leaving North Yorkshire surrounded by higher tier areas.

Dr Lincoln Sargeant, director of public health at the county council, said last week that the county was in discussions with the wider county over what tier it should be in.

He said there was a desire to “simplify” and although the county’s infection rate was low compared with its neighbours, it was still influenced by what goes on in surrounding areas.

All areas involved in those discussions are now either in or due to go into a higher tier, apart from North Yorkshire.

But, Richard Webb, director of adult care at the county council, yesterday warned that the county could be in tier two before the end of the week.

He told a North Yorkshire Local Resilience Forum, which is a partnership of emergency agencies, briefing:

“The situation in North Yorkshire is now hanging by a thread. We are currently in tier one but that is really on a knife edge.

“We may even be in a situation at the end of this week where we move into tier two restrictions. But we are hoping that we can prevent that.

“We want to stay in tier one. It is better for livelihoods and for economic wellbeing. Today we are asking people to act now to save lives more than ever.”

The discussions over what tier the county should be in has also raised concern from local MPs.

Kevin Hollinrake, Thirsk and Malton MP, has previously urged the government to look at a district approach to local restrictions.

He told the Stray Ferret it was only fair on businesses to impose tighter measures when there was an “absolute need”.

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‘Momentous decision’

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£38 million cost of shake-up

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‘We recognise there is more to be done’

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‘No idea if we will survive’

Furlough extension

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