Council agrees consultation over Stray exchange land

Senior Harrogate councillors have approved a public consultation over three plots of land to be designated for the Stray.

Last night, senior councillors on Harrogate Borough Council’s cabinet agreed to hold a 12 week public consultation this summer over which plot is the most suitable.

It follows length discussions between the authority and the Duchy of Lancaster over land to be exchanged for verges on Otley Road which will be removed for a multi-million pound cycle route

As part of the Stray Act, a suitable plot of land must be offered in exchange.

Read more

The three areas identified are:

It comes as North Yorkshire County Council looks to press ahead with the cycle route on the stretch of road between Harlow Moor Road and Beech Grove.

The area of land outlined in Harrogate Borough Council documents earmarked to be exchanged as part of the Otley Road cycle route.

The project has already been delayed and the negotiations over the Stray land have been a further stumbling block for the second phase of the scheme.

Borough council leader, Richard Cooper, said the authority had to show it was in favour of sustainable means of travel.

He said:

“We talk about sustainable transport a lot and now we are delivering some.

“It is important that we do that because when we campaign against things like the relief road nearby the Nidd Gorge and say we are in favour of sustainable measures, but fall at the first fence when they are put forward it dampens our credibility when we say we are in favour of sustainable transport.”

However, earlier this week, the Stray Defence Association (SDA) raised concern over the amenity value of the second and third options outlined by the council.

New North Yorkshire coronavirus cases ‘remain low’

North Yorkshire’s public health bosses have said new coronavirus cases remain low and the county is not “in the same ranking as Leicester”.

According to the Department of Health and Social Care, a total of 2,533 positive cases have been confirmed in the county to date.

Lincoln Sargeant, director of public health at North Yorkshire County Council, told senior councillors that around 36 new cases had been reported in the past two weeks, with the county averaging around one to two per day.

Read more:

But, he added the case numbers remain low and were not in the same position as Leicester which was put back into lockdown last month due to its high rate of infection.

He said:

“Many people will have been listening to the news on the issue about Leicester, we are not in that ranking. Scarborough which has the highest rates to date is averaging about half the rates of the levels we are seeing in Leicester at the moment.

“We are in a situation where the numbers are low and that gives us a good opportunity to consolidate that situation to work effectively with test and trace to keep those numbers low.”

It comes as hospital bosses at Harrogate District Hospital have not reported any coronavirus deaths for eight days.

The total number of deaths at the hospital remains at 81.

Nationally, a further 22 patients who tested positive for coronavirus have died in hospital.

Of that number, two were reported in the North East and Yorkshire.

NHS England said those patients who died were aged between 54 and 93 years old and all had known underlying health conditions.

It means the death toll nationally from coronavirus stands has increased to 29,125.

Harrogate Hospital reports no coronavirus deaths for a week

Harrogate District Hospital has not reported any new coronavirus deaths for a week, according to the latest NHS figures.

The death toll at the hospital from patients who tested positive for coronavirus remains at 81.

It comes as the latest Office for National Statistics figures show the number of deaths in Harrogate district care homes has passed 100.

Read more:

Nationally, a further 26 patients who tested positive for coronavirus have died in England’s hospitals. Of that number, three were in the North East and Yorkshire.

NHS England said the patients were aged between 49 and 94 years old. One patient aged 71 had no known underlying health conditions.

It takes the national death toll from coronavirus up to 29,103.

Stray exchange land identified for cycle route

Harrogate Borough Council is set to consult on three plots of land to be designated the Stray as part of a land swap to make way for the Otley Road Cycle Route.

The building of the cycle route means that verges classed as Stray land have to be removed. As part of the Stray Act, a suitable plot of land must be offered in exchange.

The council will now consult on the three areas of land before settling on one to exchange.

The three areas identified are:

Senior councillors on the borough council’s cabinet are expected to approve the public consultation on Wednesday.

It comes as North Yorkshire County Council’s looks to press ahead with a multi-million cycle route on the stretch of road between Harlow Moor Road and Beech Grove.

Read more

The scheme has been marred by delays and, with less than a mile of the route being built, the county council has been criticised over a “lack of ambition”.

Now, highways bosses will hope that the consultation will lead to a solution to its latest stumbling block and prevent any further setbacks.

The preferred area of land outlined in Harrogate Borough Council documents earmarked to be exchanged as part of the Otley Road cycle route.

Lengthy negotiations with the Duchy of Lancaster over the use of Stray land on the footpaths and verges between Cold Bath Road and Beech Grove delayed the second phase of the project from going ahead.

The borough council’s preferred option would see a plot of land behind Harrogate District Hospital which adjoins the end of Willaston Road offered in exchange.

While the land has a covenant which states that it is intended for recreational and open space, the council said it would not prevent it from being used as exchange land.

However, the Stray Defence Association (SDA) raised concern over the amenity value of the second and third options outlined by the council.

Judy D’Arcy Thompson from the SDA said:

“Land taken from the Stray to build roads, footpaths etc remains forever Stray land, belonging ultimately to the Crown.

“However, as everything on the surface of the Stray belongs to the people of Harrogate, any land utilised for any purpose must be given back to Harrogate’s people as ‘payback land and be of the same amenity value to them as their original Stray.

“What concerns us about the latest proposals from HBC and NYCC is just that. Of what ‘amenity value’ are the verges along Arthurs Avenue and St James Drive going to be for local people?

“Are people going to picnic there, sit and read a book there, play football, cricket, or any other game there? We think not. Therefore, what actual ‘amenity value’ does the land being offered have?”

No further coronavirus deaths at Harrogate Hospital

Harrogate District Hospital has recorded no further coronavirus deaths, according to latest NHS figures.

It means the death toll from coronavirus at the hospital remains at 81.

Meanwhile, a further 15 people who tested positive for covid-19 have died in England’s hospitals.

Read more

Of that number, one patient died in North East and Yorkshire.

NHS England said the patients were aged between 72 and 96 years old. One patient, aged 96 years, had no known underlying health conditions.

It takes the death toll nationally up to 29,066.

Harrogate District Hospital reports no new coronavirus deaths

Harrogate District Hospital recorded no further deaths from patients who tested positive for coronavirus, according to today’s NHS figures.

It means the death toll from coronavirus at the hospital remains at 81.

The hospital had not reported any deaths for 16 days before the latest death on July 3.

Read more

Meanwhile, 38 more people have died in England’s hospitals after testing positive for coronavirus.

Of that number, one was reported in the North East and Yorkshire.

NHS England said the patients were aged between 40 and 98 years old. Three patients, aged 65 to 86 years, had no known underlying health conditions.

It takes the death toll across the nation’s hospitals to 29,051.

Harrogate Hospital records no further coronavirus deaths

No further coronavirus deaths have been reported at Harrogate District Hospital, according to today’s NHS figures.

It means the number of deaths at the hospital remains at 81.

Meanwhile, yesterday the hospital reported that the number of patients who had tested positive for coronavirus and been discharged had increased to 139.

Read more

Nationally, a further 22 people who were confirmed with covid-19 have died in hospital. Of that number, two were in North East and Yorkshire.

NHS England said the patients were between 52 and 99 years old and all had known underlying health conditions.

It takes the death toll from coronavirus in England’s hospitals up to 29,013.

Council leaders prepare for North Yorkshire devolution

Discussions over a devolution deal for North Yorkshire took a step further this week after leaders of district authorities met with government ministers.

Simon Clarke, the local government minister, held further talks with authority leaders on Tuesday as local authorities look to continue to thrash out a deal for the county.

It comes as council leaders are considering options for devolution which may include a combined authority with an elected mayor, but are yet to agree on what proposals to put to government.

The list of requests will need to be agreed by the county council, York and the district authorities before any negotiations can begin with the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government.

Read more:

Such a deal could see further powers over transport, skills and housing handed over to North Yorkshire from Westminster.

Carl Les, leader of North Yorkshire County Council, told The Stray Ferret that Mr Clarke told authority leaders to “get on with it”.

He said:

“There is a very clear message coming out of government that devolution is a key part of recovery.

“They are very keen now that they have got Sheffield signed up and they want to see solutions for Yorkshire.

“He is giving us that encouragement to progress on this.”

Meanwhile, Unison Harrogate Local Government branch said it has requested a meeting with the chief executive of Harrogate Borough Council over potential proposals to reorganise local authorities in the county.

Unison said it has already received concerns from staff over the risk to jobs under any reorganisation. Branch secretary, David Houlgate, said the union would ask for full engagement if any proposal develops.

What is a combined authority?

A combined authority is when a group of councils come together to make joint decisions on such things as transport. It does not replace existing local councils.

The directly elected mayor is seen as the precondition for devolution. They chair the combined authority and form a cabinet made up of the leaders of the authorities in the region.

An example of this is in the Tees Valley Combined Authority, where Ben Houchen was elected mayor in 2017. The leaders of the five districts, Stockton-on-Tees, Darlington, Hartlepool, Redcar and Cleveland, and Middlesborough all sit on Mr Houchen’s cabinet.

The government has given the Mayor of Tees Valley and its combined authority new powers over transport, housing and planning.

Scale of Harrogate council’s coronavirus deficit unclear

The scale of Harrogate Borough Council’s coronavirus shortfall remains unclear as authority officials say there is “a number of unknowns” in estimating the impact of lockdown.

Paul Foster, the council’s head of finance, told a full council meeting that the council’s deficit could be anywhere between £9 million and £14.5 million.

But, in May, council officers said the shortfall could be as high as £15 million due to a loss of income on leisure, homelessness and car parking.

It comes as the authority revealed a £327,000 overspend last year, with £270,000 of that figure put down to the coronavirus pandemic.

Read more:

However, the cost is just the tip of the iceberg in what is expected to be a much larger deficit come the end of the next financial year. Other authority leaders have warned of impending bankruptcy notices at councils across the UK due to mounting deficits.

Some councils may have to look to their reserves to bail them out. Harrogate council had £27 million held over for a rainy day as of April 2019, but it remains unclear how it intends to tackle its estimated shortfall and whether or not it will use its reserves.

Mr Foster told councillors that the authority would not be issuing a section 114 notice – a drastic measure used in times of dire financial circumstances – which would ban any further spending.

He said the shortfall remains unclear at this time because of a number of factors.

“There will be a significant financial detriment due to covid-19, but it is challenging to estimate with certainty as you will appreciate there are still a number of unknowns.

“There are additional costs in responding to the pandemic, for example in the areas of homelessness and waste collection.

“However, more significant will be the irrevocable loss of income in relation to leisure, the convention centre, parking and planning. But also in relation to funding on both council tax and business rates.

“The estimated deficit ranges from £9.3 million to £14.5 million in 2020/21 depending on the assumptions that you make. 

“As I’ve said, there are still a number of unknowns around when certain facilities can open, how long social distancing measures will be in place and how our customers will behave.”

Mr Foster added that the council’s deficit position will be kept under review, along with budget plans and its reserves. The outcome of the reviews are expected to be brought before senior councillors at future cabinet meetings.

A further £500 million package of funding was announced by the government last week to help with spending pressures.

Funding allocations have yet to be revealed, but the scheme is expected to reimburse authorities for lost income and allow council tax and business rates deficits to be paid over three years instead of one.

Councillor’s ‘white lives matter’ comments ‘deplorable’, says council leader

The leader of Harrogate Borough Council has described comments made by a parish councillor for a “white lives matter” protest as deplorable and shocking.

More than two weeks ago, Cllr Ernest Butler, who sits on Darley and Menwith Parish Council, posted comments on his Facebook page suggesting that people moving to the UK were “taking over”.

The borough council received complaints about the remarks, but pointed out that its code of conduct does not extend to social media comments made by councillors.

Cllr Matthew Webber, Liberal Democrat councillor, asked council leader Richard Cooper at a meeting of the authority’s full council last night about the council’s position on the matter.

Read more:

Cllr Cooper said:

“First thing to say is Cllr Butler, who I had never heard of before this, his comments are deplorable and just really shocking.

“But there is a legal position here about what the borough council can and cannot do and I will ask the council’s solicitor to forward a copy to you of that legal position which has been supplied to those people in the media.

“You will be able to see for yourself. In fact, after so many years on the council, you should understand the standards procedure and what is and is not possible.

“But I will ask for your benefit for the council’s head of legal and governance services to forward that to you and copy all councillors in as well.

“If I was Darley and Menwith Parish Council, I would have thought twice about co-opting this gentleman in the first place and I would certainly be putting pressure on him to stand down.”

Councillor Richard Cooper (bottom right) told a full council meeting that Cllr Butler’s comments were deplorable.

It comes as Cllr Butler’s comments sparked controversy with anti-racism campaigners who took complaints to his employers.

When The Stray Ferret approached Cllr Ernest Butler he was not apologetic about his comments and said he had not done anything wrong.

He said:

“I am not a racist person. What I said online is true, there are just people out there that disagree with me and want to bring me down. I just stick my head above the parapet and say what other people can’t. It’s not racist to say people from European countries are taking jobs here and driving down the wages.”