Child suffers suspected broken leg in Parliament Street collision

A nine-year-old girl suffered a suspected broken leg after a collision on Parliament Street in Harrogate on Saturday afternoon.

Police attended the scene at around 1pm after a Volva V70 collided with several parked cars, one of which struck the girl. She was taken to hospital for treatment.

Diversions were set up around Parliament Street as police closed the main A61 road through Harrogate whilst they arranged recovery for four damaged vehicles, including the Volvo.

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No coronavirus deaths for nine days at Harrogate Hospital

Harrogate District Hospital has now gone nine days without reporting any deaths in patienta who tested positive for coronavirus, according to NHS figures today.

It means that the death toll at the district hospital remains at 80.

Nationally, a further 19 people who tested positive for coronavirus have died in hospitals. Of that number, four were in the North East and Yorkshire.

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NHS England said the patients were aged between 60 and 96 years old. All had known underlying health conditions.

It takes the national death toll up to 28,672.

Police appeal after woman dies falling from campervan near Ripley

North Yorkshire Police is appealing for information after a 40-year-old woman died falling out of a white Fiat camper van as it was travelling near Ripley.

The incident occurred on the B6165 at around 7.10pm on Sunday, shortly before the roundabout with the A61. The woman was pronounced dead at the scene.

Police officers are appealing for witnesses who may have seen the vehicle prior to or at the time of the collision.

Anyone with any information and/or dash camera footage that they believe could assist police with their enquiries should contact Traffic Constable 771 Steven James on 101 option 2, or email steven.james771@northyorkshire.pnn.police.uk.

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Harrogate International Festivals commission ‘exclusive’ new piece of music

An exclusive new piece of music commissioned by Harrogate International Festivals will premiere online next month.

The charity commissioned internationally renowned composer Dr David Lancaster to write the music, before asking musicians from all over the world to get involved by playing their part from the comfort of their living rooms.

HIF said the response was “phenomenal” with musicians submitting videos from countries including Australia, South Africa and Malaysia, as well as the UK.

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One of the submissions came from Matthew Gee, Principal Trombone with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra. He said:

“It’s great to see the arts organisations taking a fresh and radical approach to music making – for them to be commissioning new material during lockdown is even better.”

Internationally renowned composer, Professor David Lancaster.

The chief executive of Harrogate International Festivals, Sharon Canavar, also noted the importance of “keeping the arts alive in Harrogate”, despite coronavirus putting paid to its usual summer programme. She said:

“We are incredibly excited to be able to bring the world premiere of Eclipse to life this July. It is going to be a truly international collaboration and one that will help shine a bright light on the power of the arts.”

Eclipse will premiere globally from 23 to 26 July. Further details of HIF at Home are available here – https://harrogateinternationalfestivals.com/hif-at-home/. 

Eighth consecutive day with no coronavirus deaths at Harrogate District Hospital

It’s now been 8 days since the last reported death at Harrogate District Hospital of a patient who tested positive for coronavirus. 7 people in the Yorkshire and North East region were reported to have died of the virus.

The last recorded death at the hospital happened on June 18, meaning that it remains at 80 deaths for another day with 135 patient discharges.

A further 18 people, who tested positive for the coronavirus have died, bringing the total number of confirmed reported deaths in hospitals in England to 28,653.

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Patients were aged between 43 and 95 years old. One patient, aged 48, had no known underlying health conditions.

Police appeal for witnesses after child injured in Parliament Street collision

North Yorkshire Police has appealed for witnesses to a collision on Parliament Street where a child was injured by a car.

The incident happened on Saturday lunchtime and diversions were set up around Parliament Street as police closed the main A61 road through Harrogate.

North Yorkshire Police has released no further details of the incident at this time.

Anyone who may have seen the collision is asked to contact Mark Hutchings of the Major Collision Investigation Unit on 101 or email Mark.Hutchings@northyorkshire.pnn.police.uk.

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Strayside Sunday: Harrogate Borough Council must act in councillor race controversy

Strayside Sunday is our weekly political column written by Paul Baverstock, former Director of Communication for the Conservative Party

This week, two politicians, one an obscure local parish councillor, the other a Labour MP of some note, have both fallen foul of unwise activity on social media.  The very ‘White British’ Harrogate district parish councillor Ernest Butler took to Facebook to claim that (sigh) “White Lives Matter” and, to boot, that Jonny Foreigner is taking over.  Meanwhile, Rebecca Long-Bailey MP couldn’t resist attaching herself to the celebrity twitter coattails of actress and activist Maxine Peake, when retweeting the antisemitic claim that Israeli arrest methods caused the death of George Floyd.

Following multiple complaints from the public about the content of his statements, an unrepentant Mr. Butler has been suspended from work by his employers, Nidd Hall, while Ms. Long-Bailey’s unwillingness to take down her retweet gave Labour Leader Sir Keir Starmer the excuse he needed to rid his Shadow Cabinet of a leading and unreformed Corbynista.

Ms. Long-Bailey is a professional politician, working under the constant scrutiny of the British political media, and should know better.  In fact, I believe she does know better, and that she provoked a deliberate stand-off with Sir Keir in order to cement her position as Momentum’s torch bearer.  But to have done so with two such incendiary topics as Mossad and the murder of George Floyd demonstrates a deeply troubling triumph of ambition over reason.

Ernest Butler doesn’t know any better.  He is an amateur politician, bustling around Darley’s rather lovely parish, trying sincerely to do his bit for his community.  No one questions that.  His ignorance of the evil ways of social media (once you publish your views they exist on a global media platform and can never be taken back) is not a sin and should be forgiven, especially of someone not born into the generation of so-called ‘digital natives’.  However, ignorance of the current cultural context in which you make your rather fruity views known when using social media deserves less charity; the views Mr. Butler expressed are wrong.

Harrogate Council too has received complaints about Mr. Butler’s views, but has washed its hands of the affair, notwithstanding that its own code of conduct (to which, as a district councillor, Mr. Butler is subject) makes it entirely plain that, to paraphrase, you don’t get to publish your views in a purely personal capacity on social media.  And that has to be right, doesn’t it?  The very reason these pages have covered this story this week is because Mr. Butler is a Councillor, and therefore a representative of the Council.  As such he is not free to publish his views absent of Council oversight and censure.  One might have thought that, at the very least, the council would have taken the opportunity of Mr. Butler’s indiscretion to voice it’s support for a world in which Black Lives Matter, even here in Harrogate.  True to form, the council said nothing, and did nothing.  It pains me to say that Labour’s Sir Keir has this week shown our own Richard Cooper what real leadership looks like.

This is difficult and sensitive territory I know. Surely a right to free speech is part of what defines our democracy and our society?  For my part I believe in a public discourse that celebrates a person who, in the brilliant words of screenwriter Aaron Sorkin, “would advocate at the top of their lungs that which I had spent a lifetime opposing at the top of mine.” I believe in passionate arguments well-made. But I don’t get to decide. And neither, individually, do you.  It’s too late for that.

In order to support a business model based on targeted advertising, we have allowed companies like Facebook and Twitter to beg ‘platform,’ rather than publisher status.  If they had been subject to the rules traditional news and content publishers comply with we may not have seen the hate-filled, mudslinging, tear it down, free-for-all that such social media platforms enable.

In reaction, a new tyranny has taken hold, one in which social media is a megaphone to rally like-minded support and to shout down the targets of ire.  It gives expression to an ugly need to condemn, to shame, to bully and it gives an outlet to the primary school playground impulse to “all pile on.”  Worst of all it is reductionist and intellectually lazy. If you can’t hashtag it then it’s not worth saying.  Social media offers no space or inclination to inform and educate those who, like Councillor Ernest Butler, sometimes get things wrong.

Social media is but one area of contemporary life where personal responsibility is now at a premium.  This week the Great British Public has reacted to the easing of lockdown measures with wanton abandon. From the packed beaches of Bournemouth to the packed green spaces of Harrogate’s Stray, we have seen a total disregard for social distancing guidelines as lovely weather and the frustrations of lockdown seem to have overwhelmed any sense of self-control;  Dorset and North Yorkshire Police both have complained of large and rowdy gatherings of people drinking, drugging, littering and using common outdoor space as a toilet.

Boris Johnson’s strand of conservatism places personal responsibility at its core.  He believes that the right to freedom (speech and otherwise) is balanced by the responsibilities of individual citizenship.  It has been the compass he has used to guide his decision-making during the coronavirus crisis; so, when possible, Boris has chosen the path of least restriction and asked, rather than required people to change their behaviour.  This worked well initially.  However, it seems increasingly clear to me that, whether on Twitter or on the Stray, we can’t be trusted to behave.

That’s my Strayside Sunday.

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Pedestrian injured in car pile up on Parliament Street in Harrogate

The main A61 through Harrogate was shut this lunchtime after a multiple car pile up in which a pedestrian was injured.

Police have not released details of how seriously the pedestrian has been hurt. An ambulance was called to the scene.

The accident happened this lunchtime – diversions were set up around Parliament Street as police closed the road to deal with the incident.

The A61 has since re-opened.

North Yorkshire Police has asked anyone who may have seen the collision to contact Mark Hutchings of the major Collision Investigation Unit on 101 or email Mark.Hutchings@northyorkshire.pnn.police.uk.

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One week passes without any covid deaths at Harrogate District Hospital

For the seventh consecutive day there have been no reported deaths at Harrogate District Hospital of patients who tested positive for coronavirus.

The last recorded death at the hospital happened on June 18, meaning that it remains at 80 deaths for another day with 135 patient discharges.

A further 78 people, who tested positive for the coronavirus have died- 4 in the Yorkshire and North East region.  It brings the total number of confirmed reported deaths in hospitals in England to 28,635.

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Patients were aged between 56 and 97 years old.   Two patients, aged 73 and 96, had no known underlying health conditions.

Harrogate pub owners’ pop-up shop finds permanent home

A new fruit and veg shop has opened on Harlow Hill in Harrogate after a lockdown pop-up proved a huge hit with the community.

Mike and Donna Schofield, owners of The Shepherd’s Dog on Harlow Hill, set up a temporary greengrocery store during lockdown, but business was so good, they’ve decided to open a permanent shop.

The couple were forced to close their pub as lockdown struck, and they began doing weekly shops for their neighbours.

When they couldn’t get their hands on fresh fruit and vegetables, Mike and Donna decided to open a pop-up grocery shop behind their pub.

Wharfedale Fruiterers source all their produce locally

Since setting up their small stall nearly seven weeks ago, trade has boomed, getting “bigger and bigger” every day. The couple have now signed a five-year lease on what was a barber shop on Otley Road and turned it into Wharfedale Fruiterers.

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Mike, who has previously worked in the fruit and vegetable trade for big supermarkets, has been going to Leeds market every day for produce. He told The Stray Ferret:

“People are buying little and often. We are getting repeat services day in and day out, people get what they need for that day and they know they are getting it fresh from market.”

Inside the new shop.

The shop owners have been sourcing their other produce from local companies such as The Yorkshire Cheese Company and Brymor Ice Cream. Donna told The Stray Ferret:

“It was lovely having the pop-up shop but people wanted more. If we can give the locals that bit more then we will”

Resident David Silkstone, who was out buying his groceries when The Stray Ferret visited the shop, said:

“We’ve stopped buying most of our fruit and veg from Ocado and are buying from here instead. We used to have a butchers, a post office and a fish and chip shop, so to have a fruiterer here is fantastic.”