Andrew Jones MP urges Prime Minister to ease ‘strain’ on access to Harrogate NHS dentists

Harrogate and Knaresborough Conservative MP Andrew Jones today urged the Prime Minister to tackle the “immediate strain” facing local people trying to access NHS dentists.

Concerns about a shortage of NHS dentists in Harrogate were heightened last week when Chatsworth House Dental Clinic, on King’s Road, said it will stop treating NHS patients at the end of the year.

Speaking at Prime Minister’s Questions today, Mr Jones said he and fellow North Yorkshire MPs met with the local integrated care board last week to discuss ways of improving dentistry provision. He added:

“But when surgeries suddenly close to NHS patients without notice as one in Harrogate did very recently, an immediate strain is put on local provision.

“Will the Prime Minister look at what can be done in these circumstances to ensure that no one is left without access to an NHS dentist?”

Mr Sunak pledged to “look into this issue” and said Mr Jones would be “reassured” to know the government was investing £3 billion a year into dentistry. He added there were no geographical restrictions on which dentists people could attend.

‘Sitting on the sidelines’

Daisy Cooper, deputy leader of the Liberal Democrats, discussing healthcare issues with Tom Gordon, the party's parliamentary candidate for Harrogate and Knaresborough.

Tom Gordon with Daisy Cooper, the Liberal Democrats’ health spokesperson.

The man who hopes to succeed Mr Jones as Harrogate and Knaresborough MP at the next election accused his rival of “sitting on the sidelines” over dentistry.

Tom Gordon, the Liberal Democrat parliamentary candidate, said he was “pleased that after 13 years Andrew Jones has finally bowed to pressure and asked a question in Parliament about the dentist crisis affecting local residents”, adding:

“In the last six months, the Lib Dems have been increasing the pressure on him to do this. We have set up a dentists survey, arranged a meeting with the Lib Dem shadow health minister and made sure that questions were asked in Parliament about this issue.

“We’ve heard awful stories about how local people have been putting up with pain as they can’t afford to see a dentist. It shouldn’t have required a concerted campaign to make our MP act.”

“We’re determined to keep on fighting for the cash that will re-establish NHS dentistry in our area. We hope Andrew Jones will join us in this fight rather than sitting on the sidelines as he has done over this and many other issues for the last 13 years.”

Following his meeting with Humber and North Yorkshire Integrated Care Board last week, Mr Jones said:

“Dental services have been recovering but there is much more progress to be made.

“It is important that action is taken swiftly to expand the NHS dental provision in our area.”

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Lib Dems criticise Yorkshire Water river health team project

Harrogate and Knaresborough Liberal Democrats have criticised a Yorkshire Water plan to set up a river health team.

The company announced this week it was setting up the department as part of a “joined-up, region-wide approach to river health” across Yorkshire.

Part of the remit of the department is to work with community groups to understand what is important to them and develop a way of working together to improve river health.

Yorkshire Water said it would be recruiting 16 new staff to the team, including an environmental investigation lead, river health improvement manager, river health partnership and community engagement advisor. 

However, local Liberal Democrats have questioned whether it is something the company should have been pursuing anyway.

Tom Gordon, Liberal Democrat parliamentary candidate for Harrogate and Knaresborough, said:

“Is this not something Yorkshire Water should have already been doing anyway?

“It’s hardly surprising that Yorkshire is faced with polluted rivers when the water company responsible for them has not even had a dedicated team to deal with them – all because the water regulator and the Conservatives have let them off the hook. This sewage scandal must end.

“Yorkshire Water must guarantee that the cost of the new team comes from the company’s eye-watering profits, rather than simply making consumers pay to clean up their mess in the middle of a cost of living crisis.

“I and my Liberal Democrat colleagues are calling for urgent reform of all water companies and a new regulator to hold them to account.”

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Andrew Jones (left) and Tom Gordon

However, Andrew Jones, Conservative MP for Harrogate and Knaresborough, described the initiative as a “positive move”.

He said:

“Most of the focus has been on the operation of storm overflows and household waste and these aspects are incredibly important.

“But I hope in addition to addressing this the team will go further and look at rainwater run-off from agricultural land which is often the largest component of river pollution containing animal waste and pesticides.

“I also would like to see the Yorkshire Water’s community engagement team really educating people about what can be put down drains and toilets safely.  One of the reasons we see discharges from the storm overflows is because the sewers become blocked by sanitary products and cooking fat which have been disposed of incorrectly.

“It’s a big job and it looks like Yorkshire Water are assembling a big team. This is good news for Yorkshire’s rivers.”

Kevin Reardon, head of river heath at Yorkshire Water, said:

“We are committed as a business to playing our part to further improve river and coastal water quality around the region. The health of our rivers is a key national conversation, and we all have a lot to do to deliver investment in the areas that will make improvements to water quality.

“We know river and coastal water quality is a key priority for our customers and this new department illustrates our commitment to doing the right thing and working hard, alongside other stakeholders, as we begin our largest programme of environmental investment since privatisation.

“Yorkshire Water colleagues are passionate about the environment and we’re currently recruiting for 16 additional roles to help complete our team, which we believe will make further improvements to river health in the next two years and prepare ourselves for the next investment period 2025-2030.”

Knaresborough councillor ‘disgusted’ at council job ad with £82,000 salary

A councillor has criticised North Yorkshire Council for advertising a role with a salary of up to £82,000 at the same time as the authority attempts to plug a huge budget shortfall.

Cllr Matt Walker, who represents Knaresborough West for the Liberal Democrats, tweeted this morning about the council’s advert for a head of operations role in its waste collection team, which comes with a salary of between £73,755 and £82,065 plus a relocation package.

According to a report due before the council’s executive next week, the local authority is facing a budget shortfall of £30 million its first year and unless savings are found, £105 million will be need to be used from the council’s reserves over the next three years.

Cllr Walker tweeted:

“@northyorksc predicting a deficit of millions I’m disgusted that a job with this salary is been advertised. So much for savings.”

The new unitary council took over household bin collections from Harrogate Borough Council and waste disposal from North Yorkshire County Council when it was created in April.

The job advert said the successful applicant “will play a key role in bringing together and harmonising the council’s waste collection and street scene services across the county”.

Bin workers in the county who are part of the Unite union have been in a dispute over pay and have taken part in two four-day strikes in August with three more planned before the end of September.

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A Unite spokesperson previously said staff at a North Yorkshire depot were paid “some of the lowest rates in the country for doing a difficult and unpleasant job”.

In a follow up tweet about the job advertisement, Cllr Walker described the role as a “whole new level of bureaucracy”.

He added:

“We were sold the unitary on efficiencies and economies of scale. We don’t have enough waste collectors to collect our rubbish/recycling and a street cleaner is rarer than a unicorn.”

‘He’s chasing a headline’

Carl Les

In response, Cllr Carl Les, the Conservative leader of North Yorkshire Council, told the Local Democracy Reporting Service:

“I’m disappointed with these remarks. Cllr Walker is clearly chasing a headline without understanding the issue. We will find efficiencies and savings in the new single council’s operation, and this is a good example.

“We are rationalising six previous posts, and are now recruiting one manager for the whole county. Far from knocking the service that colleagues work hard to deliver, Cllr Walker should be pleased  that there will be a single head ensuring that these vital and well-demanded functions will be managed to the best of our ability.”

Local Lib Dems call for investigation into ‘mass exodus’ of ambulance staff

Harrogate and Knaresborough Liberal Democrats have called for an investigation after figures revealed a rise in staff vacancies at Yorkshire Ambulance Service.

Figures obtained by the party show the number of employees leaving the service annually had increased by 28.3% since 2019/20.

According to the data, in 2022/23 alone, 892 staff left the ambulance trust and its vacancy rate was 17% – the highest in the country.

By comparison, South Central Ambulance Service had the next highest with 16%.

Tom Gordon, the Liberal Democrat parliamentary candidate for Harrogate and Knaresborough, called on the government to investigate the ‘mass exodus” of staff.

He added that a recruitment drive should be launched to retain, recruit and train paramedics and other ambulance service staff.

Mr Gordon said:

“This is deeply disturbing and there needs to be an investigation immediately.

“We are fortunate to have a great district hospital, and fantastic ambulance staff, but paramedics and our hospital are feeling the strain of years of Conservative neglect.”

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A spokesperson for Yorkshire Ambulance Service said the vacancy figure included vacancies for all service lines including emergency operations, non-emergency patient transport service and the NHS 111 urgent care service.

They added:

“While these figures look stark in isolation, it’s important to remember there is natural attrition in every organisation and many reasons why people choose to change jobs.  Yorkshire Ambulance Service is committed to increasing its workforce, including the number of frontline clinical roles.

“The nature of our work is diverse and very much focused on providing high quality patient care, and we are committed to supporting colleagues in a positive workplace environment.”

Martin Flaherty, managing director of the Association of Ambulance Chief Executives, added:

“There is no doubt that recruitment and retention of all grades of frontline staff ranks foremost in the priorities of the boards of each of our member services so of course it is worrying to see an increase in those leaving the ambulance service. 

“However, it is important to note that the data that was requested includes all ambulance staff groups, not just paramedics, including wider clinical roles and also non-clinical such as 111 call handlers and administrative staff. 

“There is also natural attrition in every organisation and many reasons why people may choose to move on in their careers. This is not unique to the ambulance service, and indeed there are recruitment and retention issues across the wider health and social care arena.”

Lib Dem candidate accuses Tories of overseeing Harrogate Station Gateway ‘fiasco’

Tom Gordon, the Liberal Democrat’s parliamentary candidate for Harrogate and Knaresborough, has attacked the ruling local Conservatives for the £11.2 million Station Gateway “fiasco”.

The scheme looks dead in the water after a legal challenge this week prompted North Yorkshire Council to say it had revoked its decision to approve the scheme and seek legal advice.

Harrogate and Knaresborough Conservative MP Andrew Jones said it meant  the deadline to spend the cash “is certain to expire” and the gateway was now a “dead scheme”.

Mr Jones accused the Lib Dems, who control the Harrogate and Knaresborough area constituency committee that advises North Yorkshire Council, of “weak local leadership”.

But Mr Gordon laid the blame squarely at the door of the Conservatives.

He said:

“The Conservative-run North Yorkshire Council dreamt up the scheme, the Conservative-run council spend £2 million on consultants for this scheme, the Conservative-run council ignored residents, businesses, and the Lib Dem councillors concerns and as a result they have jeopardised this investment in our area. We deserve so much better.

“The facts are that three times the residents of Harrogate have rejected the current gateway scheme, we know that 74% of local businesses were opposed to it, and that countless community groups including the civic society were opposed too.

“We need a bold and innovative comprehensive integrated transport plan for Harrogate, not the scraps of piece-meal funding pots that don’t join up. We deserve proper investment and an MP who will be vocal in fighting for it.”

Both the Lib Dems and the Tories are now calling for the gateway funding, which was awarded through the government’s Transforming Cities Fund, to be spent on other projects in Harrogate.

However, the council has previously indicated the funding must be spent on this scheme or risk being lost.

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Harrogate Lib Dem claims Tories using delaying tactics to avoid town council

A row over the creation of Harrogate Town Council has continued with a Liberal Democrat councillor claiming the Conservatives are attempting to delay the process because they fear they’d lose the election.

This month North Yorkshire Council agreed to hold a third public consultation on the creation of a Harrogate Town Council, which is now likely to form in 2025, a year later originally than planned.

Despite residents backing plans for two councillors to represent single wards in the previous consultation, Conservative councillors want single councillor wards based around the 19 former Harrogate Borough Council boundaries.

A consultation on the new proposals is expected to begin this year.

The move has frustrated opposition parties including the Liberal Democrats, which would like to see the currently unparished area of Harrogate represented by a town council as soon as possible.

Liberal Democrat councillor for High Harrogate and Kingsley, Chris Aldred, told the Local Democracy Reporting Service that he believes the Conservatives “do not like town councils” and also want to delay the process in order to avoid the electorate at the ballot box. 

He said:

“The truth is that they feel the further away they can push any possible election, the better for them. They know what the public think of them, nationally and locally, and they are running very, very scared.”

One of the most vocal opponents of the two councillors per ward proposals has been Conservative councillor for Killinghall, Hampsthwaite and Saltergate, Michael Harrison, who also sits on the council’s decision-making executive.

This year, Cllr Harrison was unanimously chosen by Harrogate councillors as its first charter mayor. However, Cllr Aldred suggested the Lib Dems, which is the largest party in Harrogate, now regret backing him due to his stance on the town council. 

He added: 

“We installed Cllr Harrison as our charter mayor for this year, partly in the hope it would educate him in the important role played by the mayoralty in our town, which can’t legally be continued or expanded upon, without a fully functional town council.

“We had the numbers to put in one of our own, but we felt this issue was actually so important, we were prepared to forgo this civic honour and elect a Tory. So we are doubly disappointed that he still continues in his attempts to usurp the creation of a democratically elected town council.”

Michael Harrison

Cllr Michael Harrison

In response, Cllr Harrison told the LDRS that local politics and the mayoralty are “strictly separate.” He said:

“I am honoured to be the mayor of Harrogate and was very grateful that my fellow councillors elected me to represent them. It has been a pleasure to carry out various civic duties over the last five months, and I will continue to do so for the rest of the civic year.

“It is no secret that I remain to be convinced of the need for a town council but recognise that colleagues continue to make the case, and I will be happy to support a decision at the right time.

“I make no apology for trying to ensure that if we are to create a new town council, that it is structured in the best way possible, we understand what it might achieve and what strategic objectives it will deliver in return for the precept that the residents of the town will have no choice to pay.”

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The Conservative leader of North Yorkshire Council Cllr Carl Les described  Cllr Aldred’s claim that the Tories are against town councils as “nonsense”.

Cllr Les told the LDRS: 

“Most of my colleagues in the Conservative group have served on parish councils themselves and we all attend parish councils in our divisions. If we didn’t value their role, we wouldn’t have proposed offering the two communities in North Yorkshire which aren’t parished the opportunity to create two new parish councils.

“However it is important to get this right, as these bodies will be existence for many years to come, so it’s right to take time at the start. Cllr Aldred raised some points about warding which we are now addressing, so I don’t know why he is now criticising us. We have to do this with communities, not to them, so we need some further consultation.”

Tory accuses Lib Dems of being ‘anti-cycling’ in Harrogate Station Gateway row

The Conservative councillor in charge of delivering Harrogate’s £11.2m Station Gateway scheme has criticised the Liberal Democrats following the party’s decision to oppose the scheme — just two months after giving it their backing.

In May, the controversial active travel scheme received cross-party support among local Tories and Lib Dems.

A majority of Lib Dems said it should go ahead, providing the council engages with residents, businesses and local councillors “in a meaningful way”.

But the party withdrew its support this month, claiming the council had reneged on its promise to work with locals.

At a full meeting of the council in Northallerton yesterday, Conservative executive councillor for transport and highways, Keane Duncan, delivered a scathing assessment of the Lib Dems’ changing stance on the gateway and also disputed that any promises agreed at the May meeting had been broken. 

He said:

‘The position now from Lib Dems in Harrogate is one of being anti-investment, anti-walking, anti-cycling, anti-environment and most gravely and damaging of all, anti-goodwill — a factor and quality that I think is essential now more than ever in this council.

“This executive will continue our support for the gateway. There will be no faltering and no political games.”

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Liberal Democrat councillor for High Harrogate and Kingsley, Chris Aldred, then accused Cllr Duncan of making the statement in order to further his own political ambitions.

On Friday, Cllr Duncan was selected by the Conservatives to be its candidate for the first mayor of York and North Yorkshire with elections next year.

Cllr Aldred later demanded the council investigates the “factual accuracy” of Cllr Duncan’s statement.

He said:

“I was accused of grandstanding and plating party politics. It wasn’t us who brought this up this afternoon. 

“He could have written to me couldn’t he? He chose to mention this today. I’d like to congratulate him on the start of his campaign and I hope it goes a lot better than he’s started it today.”

Cllr Duncan’s comments also provoked veteran Harrogate councillor Pat Marsh, who was one of three Lib Dems to oppose the scheme in May. 

Cllr Marsh said:

“To say the Lib Dems are anti-cycling, walking, whatever… that is totally, totally wrong. We were against a scheme that will not really deliver for any of that. We want the right scheme and not the wrong scheme.”

The West Yorkshire Combined Authority is current reviewing the business case for the project with a final decision on whether it goes ahead expected later this summer.

Selby and Ainsty by-election candidates have their say – Part 4

This article is the fourth of a series of six.

Voters across parts of the district will be heading to the polls on Thursday (July 20), when Selby and Ainsty holds a by-election triggered by the resignation last month of MP Nigel Adams. 

Most of the Selby and Ainsty constituency lies beyond our district’s borders – it stretches almost as far as Goole and Doncaster – but its northern end does encompass Huby, Follifoot, Spofforth and some of the villages in the Vale of York, such as Tockwith, Green Hammerton and Long Marston. 

There’s a broad field to choose from – there are 13 candidates – but who are they, and what do they believe? 

In the lead-up to the by-election, we’re spotlighting two or three each day, giving constituents the opportunity to read about the people who wish to represent them at Westminster – in their own words. 

So far, we’ve featured Andrew Gray (independent), Claire Holmes (Conservative), Mike Jordan (Yorkshire Party), Dave Kent (Reform UK), Keir Mather (Labour), Nick Palmer (independent), and Guy Phoenix (Heritage Party).

Continuing to take their surnames in alphabetical order, today’s candidates are Sir Archibald Stanton of the Monster Raving Loony Party, and Matt Walker of the Liberal Democrats.

Tomorrow: Arnold Warneken (Green Party), and John Waterston (Social Democratic Party).

Sir Archibald Stanton, The Official Monster Raving Loony Party 

Urging the electorate to “vote for insanity”, the party’s policy proposals include preventing identity theft by calling everyone Chris, and introducing a Board of Bribery which would set standardised rates on the principle of “sleaze for the many, not just the few”. 

“Good people of Selby and Ainsty, Sir Archibald Stanton is the Official Monster Raving Loony Party candidate for your constituency on July 20, 2023. 

“We are a party that’s on everyone’s side, no matter what your political persuasion may be. Yes, just like you, we have seen it all before, heard it all before and still don’t believe it. 

“Let’s shake them up, between us we can show them that we do care about our country. 

“Here’s a brief selection from our Manicfesto:- 

“Together we can make your constituency very proud, the wonderful district that changed the face of modern-day politics. 

“The Monster Raving Loony Party are the only OFFICIAL Party – all the rest are unofficial. 

“Don’t let apathy win this election. 

“Please remember the only wasted vote is one that’s not used, so if you don’t usually vote then vote unusually. 

“Look out for the top hat symbol on your polling card and put a large X in the box for Loony, in the certain knowledge that you have carried out your democratic duty. You’ve got nothing to lose. 

“Look out for Archie and his right-hand man Gilly on the campaign trail. 

“And don’t forget – a vote for Sir Archibald is a vote for the future. 

“Vote Sir Archibald Stanton on July 20, 2023 – you know it makes sense.”

Matt Walker, Liberal Democrats 

Matt Walker currently represents Knaresborough West on North Yorkshire County Council. The Liberal Democrats have usually come third in Selby and Ainsty, so will need to benefit from a considerable shift in the electoral landscape if they are to win this time. 

“I’m delighted to have been selected as the local Liberal Democrat candidate for Selby and Ainsty. As a candidate I will be a passionate campaigner for the area, listening to residents’ views and championing their issues. 

“Residents across Selby and Ainsty have been let down, our NHS is on its knees. In my professional life I am a manager in the NHS, and in one of my previous roles I spent time managing the GP out-of-hours and minor injuries unit at Selby Memorial Hospital. I’ve seen first hand just how amazing our NHS is and just how much damage the Conservatives have done to it. 

“The Liberal Democrats will be fighting for every vote at this election. Whether it’s the crisis in our NHS or the cost of living, the government has taken North Yorkshire for granted for too long and it’s time for a change.”

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Andrew Jones calls for apology after Lib Dem rival wrongly says Harrogate ticket office closing

Harrogate and Knaresborough MP Andrew Jones has called on his Liberal Democrat rival to apologise for wrongly claiming Harrogate train station ticket office was due to close.

Rail operator Northern said this morning it planed to shut 131 ticket offices — but Harrogate’s would be one of 18 to remain open. It is part of a nationwide cull of hundreds of ticket offices.

Some four hours after the news was announced, Tom Gordon, the Lib Dem prospective parliamentary candidate for Harrogate and Knaresborough, published a press release titled ‘Lib Dems call on rail bosses to save Harrogate ticket office’.

It said the “the closure of the ticket office at Harrogate station will lock so many people out of being able to access tickets and travel by train” and urged the government and rail leaders to “think again”.

Not closing: Harrogate train station ticket office.

An hour later Harrogate and Knaresborough Lib Dems issued an ‘updated press release’ in which Mr Gordon called for “reassurances on the future of Harrogate ticket office”.

His initial press release prompted Mr Jones to say:

“Harrogate ticket office is remaining open.  It doesn’t need saving.  It was never threatened with closure.

“Assuming they didn’t know the facts, although this may just be political scaremongering, all the Liberal Democrats had to do was read the Stray Ferret, any other local news outlet or my Community News website and they would have known the actual situation.

“The news had been up on those sites for hours before they issued their erroneous press release.  An apology to the customers and staff who have been worried by this false claim would seem to be an appropriate thing to do.”

The Stray Ferret asked Mr Gordon for a response to Mr Jones’ comments and whether he would issue an apology but had not received a response by the time of publication.

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‘Two in three chance’ Conservatives will lose Selby & Ainsty

The upcoming by-election in Selby and Ainsty is the most likely of three in the UK to see a win for the Conservatives, according to bookmakers’ odds.

Parliamentary seats in Uxbridge and South Ruislip, and Somerton and Frome, will also be contested on Thursday, July 20.

Statistics from bookmakers’ odds, analysed by the Telegraph, reveal the Selby and Ainsty seat is the most likely of the three to remain in Tory hands.

However, it still has a 66% likelihood of being lost to another party or independent candidate.

By comparison, Boris Johnson’s former seat of Uxbridge and South Ruislip has a 92% likelihood of being lost, and Somerton and Frome – previously held by David Warburton until his resignation after having the whip removed by the party – is rated at 71%.

In Selby and Ainsty, the by-election was triggered by the resignation of Nigel Adams, a close ally of the former prime minister.

He had held the seat since 2010, when it was first formed, and won a majority of just over 20,000 at the last election in 2019.

This time, the Conservative candidate will be Claire Holmes. She will stand against 12 other candidates, including two who have stood in the constituency before: Arnold Warneken for the Green Party and Mike Jordan for the Yorkshire Party.

The full list of candidates is:

Any constituents who have not yet registered to vote have until midnight tonight to do so on the government’s website.

It will be the first time voter ID will be required for an election in North Yorkshire. Acceptable forms of ID include photocard driving licences, UK passports, and bus passes for older or disabled people.

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