The Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rishi Sunak, visited Harrogate today to attend the final day of the Local Government Association conference.
Mr Sunak, who is the Conservative MP for Richmond in North Yorkshire, is the latest high-profile politician to make an appearance at the three-day event at Harrogate Convention Centre.
It’s the biggest event on the local government calendar and has brought about 1,500 delegates to Harrogate.
On Tuesday, levelling up secretary Michael Gove gave the keynote address. His Labour Party shadow, Lisa Nandy, has also among the speakers.
Yesterday, Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey was in town for the conference and spoke to the Stray Ferret about the party’s ambitions in Harrogate.
Children at New Park Primary Academy also had a surprise visit this afternoon from secretary of state for education, Nadhim Zahawi.
Harrogate Convention Centre tweeted some pictures of Mr Sunak chatting with delegates today.
Day 3 of #LGAConf22 and among the 1,600+ delegates gathered in #Harrogate to debate important issues and make decisions on local public services is @RishiSunak #localgov @LGAcomms pic.twitter.com/WfmE25O5LA
— Harrogate Convention Centre (@HgtConventions) June 30, 2022
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Leeds Bradford Airport scraps plans for £150m terminal
Leeds Bradford Airport has abandoned plans to build a new £150m terminal, blaming “excessive delays” around a decision on whether it could go ahead.
In February 2021, the airport was granted planning permission by Leeds City Council to build the facility that would have replaced its current terminal.
The airport said it would help increase annual passenger numbers from four million to seven million and extend flight hours.
The company claimed the proposals would “deliver one of the UK’s most environmentally efficient airport buildings” but the plans faced criticism from environmental groups, including Zero Carbon Harrogate.
Following the council’s approval, the government decided to “call-in” the plans, which meant it would have had the final say on whether it would go ahead.
A public inquiry was announced by the government’s Levelling Up Secretary, Michael Gove, in January, but no dates had been set.
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LBA said “excessive delays” around the government’s decision to call in the plans led them to withdraw its plans.
Instead, the airport will focus on refurbishing its existing terminal.
Vincent Hodder, chief executive of LBA, said:
“It is with regret that we have made the decision to withdraw LBA’s application for the development of a new replacement terminal.
“As the travel and aviation industry continues to recover from the impacts of the pandemic, LBA needs to be able to respond to rapidly increasing demand within the next few years.
“Whilst this is a setback for our airport and region, we remain committed to investing in LBA to be an outstanding, decarbonised, modern airport for the future.”