North Yorkshire Tories call on next government to ‘get real’ over energy bills

Tory councillors on North Yorkshire County Council have told the Conservative Party leadership candidates that direct targeted help will be needed to support residents through the energy cost crisis.

Senior members of the party in the traditional Conservative stronghold of North Yorkshire say they are becoming increasingly concerned about how the most vulnerable members of the community will cope financially ahead of Ofgem confirming October’s energy price cap tomorrow.

They have pointed towards demand for North Yorkshire County Council’s Local Assistance Fund, which provides support for vulnerable people needing help with essential living costs, doubling in recent months.

Energy bills are forecast to top £5,300 annually in April next year, representing a huge increase from previous predictions.

Prime ministerial candidate frontrunner Liz Truss has promised an emergency budget if she is selected, saying she would reverse National Insurance rises and stop business tax hikes.

She has also suggested extra cash support may be available for families struggling with energy bills.

Meanwhile Rishi Sunak said he would prioritise tackling inflation and introduce more targeted support for households, pledging to reduce VAT on domestic energy bills.

Read more:

A meeting of North Yorkshire County Council’s executive this week heard its finance boss and deputy leader, Councillor Gareth Dadd, say while he remained confident the authority could rise to the challenge of tackling inflationary pressures, some residents would struggle.

Gareth Dadd

Cllr Dadd (pictured above) said:

“If I can just give one message to either one of the, well one in particular, of the prime ministerial candidates, call it hand-outs, call it what you want, there is no two ways, given the rising price cap that we are expecting in a few days’ time, direct support will be needed to those most in need.

“A pound a week saving via a tax cut will not make the cut as far as I am concerned across the most vulnerable residents in North Yorkshire.

“It’s about time we got real and recognised this and it’s direct support that’s needed as there’s an impact on our services and our costs. I think we’ve already seen evidence of that through the Local Assistance Fund.

“The plea is direct target help with those energy bills will go a long way to seeing off some of the demand rises that we’ve seen lately.”

Andrew Jones MP defends government response to energy crisis

Harrogate and Knaresborough MP Andrew Jones has defended the government’s response to the energy crisis, saying there are “no easy short-term fixes” to reduce the nation’s dependency on gas and oil.

Business leaders wrote to Mr Jones this week with warnings that many firms face closure due to soaring energy prices.

In response, Mr Jones said long-term progress had been made in the move away from fossil fuels and that the government was providing support for businesses and households during the current crisis.

He said in a letter: 

“Renewable capacity in the electricity market has increased from 2.3% in 1996 to 49.7% today, according to the UK Energy Brief 2022.

“Even though renewable energy is supplying more of the market, its cost is linked to wholesale gas prices.

“What the above shows is that there are no easy short-term fixes to reduce our dependency on gas and oil. But the long-term decisions that have been taken are beginning to bear fruit.”

Mr Jones was writing in a letter to the Harrogate District Chamber of Commerce, which also contacted Skipton and Ripon MP Julian Smith and Selby and Ainsty MP Nigel Adams about its “grave concerns”.

Chamber chief executive David Simister urged the Conservative MPs to put pressure on the government to “act now” and help businesses before they reach “tipping point”.

Read more:

In response, Mr Smith said in a statement he was “extremely concerned” about energy costs and that he would “put pressure on ministers to do more”.

Meanwhile, Mr Jones also highlighted the support already being provided to businesses and families, including a £400 grant for all UK households from October.

Homes in council tax bands A to D should have also received £150, while eight million low income households will get £650 on top of this. There are also £300 payments promised for eight million pensioners.

For businesses, Mr Jones said a new rates relief will support investment in property upgrades from 2023 when a separate small profits rate will also mean around 1.4 million businesses continue to pay corporation tax at 19% or none at all.

Mr Jones added: 

“Business owners, those who work for them and their customers are also domestic gas and electricity users and you will know that a lot has been done in respect of shielding everybody from rising prices.

“I wanted to highlight that support for businesses and employees is already of scale.”

His comments come as the government has previously said there would be no new policies before a new Prime Minister is in place. 

The new Conservative Party leader – and Prime Minister – is set to be announced on September 5.

Liz Truss is the current favourite to replace Boris Johnson. She has promised tax cuts and recently hinted at direct financial help for hard-hit households.

Her rival, Rishi Sunak, has vowed to introduce more targeted support for households, including a reduction in VAT on domestic energy bills from 5% to zero.

Care provider expands to Harrogate district

Business Breakfast is sponsored by Harrogate law firm Truth Legal. 

A care provider from Northallerton has expanded into the Harrogate district.

Blossom Home Care provides care to the elderly and other adults with home care requirements. Established in 2015 in Northallerton, Blossom has moved into the north-east, North Yorkshire and other areas of the UK.

Carrianne Walters and Darren Kacis, franchise owners of Blossom Home Care Harrogate, have over 30 years experience in social care.

Their office opened this week on Hartwith Way in Harrogate.

They can be contacted on 01423 649885 or by email at managerharrogate@blossomhomecare.co.uk.

Read more:

Harrogate town centre flats nears completion

Apartments being developed in central Harrogate are due to be ready to move into this autumn.

Lambert House is being built by Harrogate-based Tate Estates and consists of 12 two-bedroom apartments, just off Station Parade.

All the apartments have private under-croft parking and several of the properties include two-storey duplex layouts and balconies.

Shane Tate, from Tate Estates, said:

“We’re excited to release the homes for sale, and especially because we’ve already had high levels of enquiries from a wide range of potential buyers during the construction phase.”

Fears up to 3 million litres of water wasted during lengthy Ripon leak

There are fears up to three million litres of water went to waste in Ripon yesterday, after a Yorkshire Water mains pipe burst on North Street.

The pipe burst at around 5am and meant around 4,000 homes in Ripon and the surrounding area woke up to no water.

It wasn’t fully restored until 7pm later in the day, with the company setting up two emergency bottled water stations at Ripon fire station and Ripon Racecourse for residents.

Emergency bottled water stations were set up in the city.

The Bishop of Ripon was among those criticising Yorkshire Water’s response to customers, saying its lack of communication was “unacceptable”.

https://twitter.com/HartleyHAM/status/1560284278331678720

A source at the scene told the Stray Ferret that engineers working on the leak said 70 litres of water were lost every second before it was fixed.

In a 12-hour period, this would have meant over three million litres could have been lost in total.

We put this figure to Yorkshire Water. A spokesperson said the figure was “inaccurate” but was unable to say how much water had been lost.

They said as soon as the leak was located engineers managed to stem the flow.

However, according to the company’s Twitter account, the leak wasn’t identified until 12pm, seven hours after it was first reported.

This suggests between 1.5 million and 2 million litres of water could have been lost.

Engineers on the scene Pic: Paul Smith

Read more:

The burst main has come at a bad time for Yorkshire Water. The Harrogate district is now officially in drought and a hosepipe ban will come into force from August 26.

We asked Yorkshire Water what caused the leak and a spokesperson sent the following statement:

“Our pipework has been under a lot of pressure recently – with high peaks of water usage and the dry ground causing soil to contract, which causes pipes to fracture more easily. We’ve increased resource in our field teams over the last few weeks, so that we can catch more small leaks before they turn into bursts and fix the big bursts as soon as possible.

“It took a little bit longer than usual to locate the burst pipe and complete the fix yesterday, as it was underground and tricky to locate. We delivered bottled water to customers on our priority services register and updated our customers via the website, social media and text, as to where they could collect bottled water.

“We’re grateful to our customers for their patience whilst we fixed the issue – those eligible for compensation in relation to the water supply interruption will receive it automatically.”

Water returns to some properties in Ripon

Water has returned to some homes in Ripon following a burst pipe on North Road this morning.

Many properties in the city have had no water or low water pressure all morning.

Some companies in Ripon were forced to close, including the coffee shop at Larkhill Nurseries and the Water Rat pub. The latter has now reopened.

The problem has also affected people in nearby villages Sharow and Littlethorpe, as well as further afield in Thirsk.

Residents on Lead Lane in Ripon told the Stray Ferret at about midday that water had come back on, as have residents living in Deep Ghyll Croft and Saint Marygate. However, one person living in Sharow says water is still off as of midday.

Yorkshire Water has been slow to tell the public when normal water supply will resume.

North Road will soon be closed to traffic whilst repairs take place.

A spokesperson issued the following statement.

“Our teams are dealing with a burst 12-inch water main on North Road, Ripon. We are currently working to rezone our network and return water supply to those affected.

“To allow our teams to complete the repair safely, traffic management will be required. We’re working closely with North Yorkshire County Council highways teams to minimise disruption.”

Read more:

 

Business Breakfast: Harrogate advertising firm wins ferry contract

Business Breakfast is sponsored by Harrogate law firm Truth Legal. 

A Harrogate advertising firm has won a media contract from a ferry company.

CP Media, which specialises in outdoor advertising and has an office in Harrogate, will upgrade media sites across all 33 CalMac ferries, ranging from traditional print to the latest digital screens.

CalMac is the UK’s largest ferry operator, transporting more than five million passengers a year to the Clyde, West Coast and Hebridean Islands.

Mike Brennan, chief executive at CP Media, said:

“This contract represents a key win, further extending our media coverage across Scotland, which includes outdoor sites in Edinburgh, Dundee and all the Scottish Highlands and Islands airports.

“This important contract also enhances our national media coverage of 10,000 outdoor advertising sites across the UK on roadsides, stadiums, retail environments and at 23 regional UK airports.”

Robbie Drummond, managing director of CalMac, added: 

“This strategic partnership will support our revenues and enable continued investment in these hugely important services for the area’s community and economy.”

Read more:

Harrogate Bus Company renames 36 bus after Rachel Daly

Harrogate Bus Company has renamed one of its 36 buses after local football hero Rachel Daly.

Daly was part of the England Lionesses side which won Euro 2022 last month after a 2-1 win over Germany at Wembley.

The 36 bus which has been renamed Rachel Daly.

The 36 bus which has been renamed Rachel Daly.

The company said the renaming was its way of saluting Daly, who grew up in the town.

Frank Stanisauskis , Harrogate Bus Company general manager, said: 

“Rachel and the England team’s stunning performance throughout the Euro 2022 tournament has captivated the whole nation, and nowhere more so than right here in Harrogate.

“Naming one of our buses after Rachel is our way of saying thank you for her amazing success which has brought football home. Rachel is a fantastic role model for young sportswomen in Harrogate and around the world and naming a bus in her honour is all about celebrating her amazing achievements.”

Northern’s new timetable includes early Harrogate to Leeds trains

Rail operator Northern has published a new timetable that confirms the 6.07am and 6.33am services from Harrogate to Leeds will return from December.

Northern controversially axed the services earlier this year, blaming a lack of resources and the need to recruit and train more drivers.

It provoked a backlash from business travellers who relied on the services to get to London before 9am.

The operator had always promised that the services would return in December, which has now been confirmed with publication of the timetable.

Brian Dunsby, of the Harrogate Line Supporters Group, welcomed the announcement. He said:

He said:

“It is very encouraging that Northern has kept their promise to reinstate all the lost services that were cut out in May 2022, although they have not been able to bring any forward to September 2022 due to the ongoing industrial action.”

Read more:

No trains will run through Harrogate and Knaresborough tomorrow or Saturday due to a day of national strike action.

The Rail, Maritime and Transport workers’ union and Transport Salaried Staffs’ Association are striking over pay and conditions.

Last month, members of the RMT union organised a picket line outside Harrogate train station as part of the ongoing dispute.

Boutique Harrogate firm wins digital marketing agency of the year award

This article is sponsored by The Micro Agency.

A Harrogate company has won an award for digital marketing agency of the year after being praised for its “personal touch”.

The Micro Agency, which is based at Harrogate Business Centre, was awarded the title at the Innovation and Excellence Awards 2022.

Founded by married couple Carly Chaffer and Gary Hartley, the agency was given the award after judges recognised their “personal touch”, “consistency of reviews” and “community feel”.

Judges were also impressed with how the couple managed to retain clients during the covid pandemic. The agency has since looked to grow off the back of this as more companies invest in digital opportunities.

The company was founded three years ago after Carly and Gary decided to leave their previous freelance work behind and team up to launch the agency.

The couple wanted to combine their skills and offer something more personal for clients.

As part of the agency, Carly heads up the marketing side and Gary handles the website design and development.

Together, the couple boast 35 years experience in the industry and pride themselves on being approachable and personable with clients.

‘It was brilliant’

Ahead of picking up the award at a ceremony in December in Leeds, Carly said it was an unbelievable achievement for the couple.

She said:

“It was brilliant to find out the news.

“We know we are not the biggest, but we pride ourselves on getting results and building long-term relationships with our clients.”

But, the couple are no strangers to picking up awards.

Over her 15 years in the industry, Carly was was named as one of the Top 30 Women Under 30 in Digital by global media platform The Drum and was also shortlisted for Young Achiever of the Year at the Sue Ryder Awards.

For the future, the pair hope to continue their personal approach to clients and continue to grow their base.

For more information on The Micro Agency, visit their website.

Business Breakfast: Harrogate law firm promotes solicitor to senior associate

Business Breakfast is sponsored by Harrogate law firm Truth Legal. 

A Harrogate law firm has promoted one of its solicitors to senior associate.

Brian Nuttney has been awarded the promotion at McCormicks Solicitors.

Mr Nuttney works in the crime and fraud department and appears regularly in the magistrates’ courts and police stations across North Yorkshire and further afield.

Partner Peter Minnikin, head of the department, said: 

“Brian is an important part of what is a very busy team – as illustrated by our recent appointments of two new lawyers – and his promotion is well deserved.”

Prior to his career in law, Mr Nuttney was a successful journalist and worked as deputy editor for a number of regional newspapers.

Read more:

Linley and Simpson parent company acquires property agency

The parent company of Harrogate estate agent Linley and Simpson has acquired an online property agency.

Lomond Group has bought the multi-regional agent Property Hub Lets and its 700 properties across Leeds, Manchester, Liverpool and Birmingham.

The management of the properties will now be transferred over to high street branches, including Linley and Simpson.

Will Linley, co-founder of Linley and Simpson and managing director of the Lomond Group, said: 

“This is the first time we have acquired an agency that operated exclusively online, and are thrilled with the high-quality portfolio we have inherited.

“It represents a perfect synergy for us as we already have a strong presence across the majority of major cities that Property Hub Lets covers. We now look forward to transferring all these properties smoothly and speedily into a number of our local branches.

“This deal is our first multi-regional one in England – and a model we are looking to mirror in future acquisitions.

“It underlines the unique proposition of Linley and Simpson and the Lomond Group, and the strength of our network of regional brands where we are able to link together across huge swathes of the country to accommodate a diverse geographical portfolio. The deal also extends our portfolio reach into Liverpool for the first time.”

Business Breakfast: Harrogate law firm appoints new head of estates

Business Breakfast is sponsored by Harrogate law firm Truth Legal. 

A Harrogate law firm has appointed a new head for its estates department.

Harriet Thornton will take the position at LCF Law, where she will oversee an 18-strong team.

Ms Thornton will take up the position as head of estates after initially training at the company as a lawyer.

She said:

“I’m particularly proud of the work I have done growing the firm’s leasehold enfranchisement division, helping both landlords and tenants with lease extensions as well as purchases and sales of their freeholds. We created a fixed fee staged costs model so when dealing with collective enfranchisements for blocks of apartments, every leaseholder knows exactly where they stand.

“Working with developers on projects across Leeds, London, Manchester and Harrogate is also particularly rewarding, as I get to assist them at every stage of the project, from site acquisition through to setting up the estate development and subsequent plot sales. I also help developers with purchase and development finance and always take a proactive approach to every project.”

Simon Stell, managing partner at LCF Law, said: 

“Harriet is a very capable and dependable lawyer who is well-liked by clients and colleagues. Having won and been shortlisted for several industry awards over the years, she has carved out an impressive career, built and enviable client list and led the way in providing first rate services that exceed clients’ expectations.”

Read more:

Work starts on Ripon Business Park expansion

Work has started on an expansion of a Ripon business park.

The park, which is based off Ripon bypass, looks set to see a further 25,000 sq ft of industrial and trade units built.

Construction is set to be complete by spring next year and FSS Property has been leading the project as its agent.

Adam Crawfurd-Porter, lead agent for the scheme at FSS Property, said:

“I am delighted to support my clients in developing the site further, ensuring a new provision of industrial units to service the needs of the local area.

“I was confident that the scheme we proposed would solicit good interest but to have pre-let over half of the site before building works have commenced is a great result”

FSS Property is taking enquiries on the remaining units on the site. For more information, visit their website.