Editor's Pick of the Week: New logos, derailed land trains and the Station Gateway saga

Is £32,000 too much for a logo? Or is it value for money?

Take one look at the politicial news this week and those are two questions which politicians have clashed over after Labour Mayor of York and North Yorkshire, David Skaith, revealed a rebrand for the combined authority.

The new logo is supposed to “celebrate our region’s heritage and rurality with an innovative twist”.

But the rebrand set social media alight with criticism and some described it as “ugly”.

Unsurprisingly, Conservative politicians wasted little time in issuing a press release on Wednesday morning to capitalise on the controversy and criticised the mayor for spending too much on the rebrand.

Another political saga which sees no sign of ending is the Harrogate Station Gateway.

Yesterday, the Get Away group kept its fight alive by questioning statements made by Cllr Keane Duncan over whether construction could start on the scheme regardless of a legal challenge.

Amid the battle over whether the gateway should go ahead or not, we sought the views of those politicians who until now had kept their views on the matter to themselves.

Both Cllr Sam Gibbs, the Conservative member for Valley Gardens and Central Harrogate, and Tom Gordon, Liberal Democrat MP for Harrogate and Knaresborough, commented on the saga on Wednesday.

Finally, whether or not Knaresborough gets a land train remains in the balance.

Those who were hoping to ride down Waterside on a train may be forced to wait a little longer as a funding problems have derailed the project.

Business leaders in Knaresborough have not given up hope, but the sight of carriages carrying passengers through the town will not be happening anytime soon it appears.

John Plummer is away