Is Northumberland County Council's levelling up team inviting Tesco to develop a new store in Blyth Town Centre?

 

The retail giant Tesco is widely advertising their growth plans and are seeking sites across England to house new large trading centres and Tesco express branches.

The Council is managing a huge levelling up program for Blyth Town centre to increase footfall in the Town appears to be solely focused on a Community Centre project to spend almost £9m of the £23m of awarded government funds on. 

Unlike other Towns in the County the Conservative led County Council missed the opportunity to develop a new leisure centre in the Town Centre as in towns like Cramlington, Ashington, Hexham, Ponteland, Berwick and Morpeth which history has shown drives a high level of footfall in the areas where they are sited, helping business and the night time economy into the bargain. Blyth's 60yr old centre is tucked away behind some allotments and nowhere near a retail outlet.

With the prime opportunity missed, a secondary chance may be sitting on the horizon in the shape of both former MP’ Ronnie Campbell's Covered in Market Place, offering free or low cost businesses and start up’s the chance to trade or Tesco's growth scheme or even both. Large Tesco stores are a major attraction and the retail experience of multi mode and high variety shopping is well enjoyed by many even in areas with lower than average incomes, with Tesco's budget ranges are classed as top class.

Reshaping the Town centre around another large supermarket would achieve the ideals of the levelling up agenda, increasing employment and drawing in many more multi outlet shoppers into the Town Centre which would still support Morrisons, as in other centres with two large outlets competition does not damage each others trade but rather brings in greater numbers of shoppers onto the High Street.

The Community Centre model will simply run down the Town Centre further with current community, arts, theatre and cinema attractions being forced out as the slippage of Arts Council funding is passed by the Authority into its own centre and the competitive nature of a large room hire building bankrolled by a Council damaging other premises business models such as clubs and pubs who will lose a good deal of trade to the organisation their business rates bankroll. It's a vicious circle that Northumberland Conservatives will run to suit their indoctrination needs and not serve the wants of local people.

Levelling down using your cash to do it with:- Northumberland Conservatives.

 

Councillor Lynne Grimshaw believes things need to be done rapidly to stop us slipping into recession.

 Councillor Lynne Grimshaw is concerned that the lack of help through the levelling up funds, also what she sees as a close down of opportunity for many young people and the Dutch Bank ING reporting a slow down and predicted fallback in the economy during the summer months will lead us into recession, increasing pressure on the voluntary sector to fill the gaps that could be plugged by Northumberland County Council.

Industry analyst Make UK ran a survey recently and found that 36% of North-East manufacturers said they were not aware of the Governments levelling up initiatives or are not satisfied with its progress, with the Community Renewal Fund being cited as ‘Invisible’ to some. With only 48% of Covid Relief Funds being distributed and only tiny amounts of Additional Covid Relief funds being passed on to companies by Councils Councillor Grimshaw believes that: “Recession is much closer than we think to becoming a reality and Council’s like Northumberland County Council need to ensure they seek out companies who can benefit from this universal help and save jobs that will slip out of our local North-East economies if the ING bank's predictions are correct and help isn’t forthcoming to local firms”.

She went on to say: “I also believe the student debt scenario will drive cash from our local economy as well as lowering opportunity and probably breaking the dreams of many young people from poorer backgrounds and postcodes”.

“Both the Government and Councils need to pull out all the stops and grow up and whilst doing so they need to scrap the centralised doling out from pots and get regional development agencies restarted”. “as the neighbour of Scotland sharing a 200 mile long border we in Northumberland can see the brilliant effect the retention of RDA’s have on society North of the Border and we who dwell North of Hadrian's Wall would like some of that as well, as during periods of depression and recession those areas in Scotland covered by RDA’s fair far better than we do”. 

”A simple look around at how little people have in their shopping baskets locally will tell you how hard life is becoming for local folk and food banks are not the answer in the longer term”. “Councils can help if they locate the will but infighting among the Conservative administration at County Hall means that the will is often hidden behind the political maneuvering.”

 

Surely 'food-bank' growth can't be the only offer from this tainted Government, asks Councillor Margaret Richardson?

 

Councillor Margaret  Richardson is a County Councillor for Cowpen Ward in Blyth which is home to the most households with the lowest average incomes in Northumberland.

 She recently expressed concern at the Government's attitude towards food-banks, their volunteers as well as its use of the media in decrying working lower paid families, the unemployed and state pensioners branding them as second class on a regular and ongoing basis.

 Councillor Richardson told us here at Northumberland News that "I need to tell the public how difficult it is to get a referral to a food bank, explain how stressful it is for the voluntary sector and try to clear the decks on how food banks aren't in any way opposition to the retail sector as the Tories would have us believe".

 It's not a complex story but 12 years of Government Austerity and a futile Brexit deal has allowed the Tories to fail all levels of society on food and the rapid decline of wages through inflationary pressure ensuring shareholders gain at the expense of workers and pensioners is pressuring us all.

 Care professionals, such as social workers, school staff, district nurses and health visitors, identify those in need of help and give them a referral for a food voucher for their local food bank. This voucher provides a food parcel of three days’ worth of non-perishable food from the bank.

 It's difficult to get referrals but if you're in an emergency situation you  can get up to three vouchers (only one at a time) for any one crisis, giving you a total of 9 days worth of food.

These vouchers are individually exchanged for three days’ worth of emergency food at your local food bank. The best way to get that help is to phone citizens' advice.

 Councillor Richardson also said "I have friends in the voluntary sector who help at our local food banks.

They pull out all the stops daily to cover the growing needs of people through the Governments mismanagement of the economy and the segregation of the poor from society, the growth of people in need is tiring those dedicated folk and I
hope the Tories in Parliament see the need for an emergency budget to reduce the pressure on working people and help both working families and dedicated volunteers."

 

Parts of the chocolate industry are letting down society, says Councillor Kath Nisbet.

"Good Friday started with some excellent news for me as Reuters news agency reported that the giant Italian confectioner Ferrero, agreed to stop buying palm oil from Malaysian planters Sime Darby after it was revealed they were using forced labour on their plantations" "I'm certain that it will make Nutella and of course Ferrero Rocher taste a little sweeter to me in future, not that I eat much of it but at Easter chocolate gets a boost in most homes" said Councillor Nisbet.

She continued: "But on opening my newspaper it was revealed that Nestle, PepsiCo and Oreo makers Mondelez are still advertising their wares in Russia even though their mother countries are involved in the sanctions against Russia".

"Like many of my constituents I have been shocked and dismayed at the happenings and reports from Ukraine and support the stands being taken by trade unionists and workers in Eastern and Central Europe who its said have organised a boycott of the big three's products."

"In the past I worked in Central
Europe and know how let down workers there will feel about the activities of these confectioners in the face of a disgraceful war in a neighbouring Country. I hope we hear from the TUC in the coming days to see what direction our trade unions will travel on this matter".

Labour’s Flood Defence Schemes Paying Dividends” Councillor Eileen Cartie!

Blyth Councillor Eileen Cartie, was very pleased with the recent report from the Environment Agency surrounding the success of flood defences in protecting existing and future homes in England.

The Environment Agency has said its six year drive to create new flood defences has exceeded targets and more than 314,000 homes in England are now better protected as a result with almost 850 new flood and coastal erosion scheme being built or opened since 2015.

 

Councillor Cartie of Wensleydale Ward in Blyth, told us that “When the work planned by the last Labour administration began and we linked flood defences to planning through the County Council’s former Core Strategy document I wasn't sure of how those plans would pan out, but was assured by the then leader of Council Grant Davey, that things would grow in the right direction.”

 “ I was amazed at how rapidly matters progressed from protecting old age peoples Council bungalows in Newsham (Blyth) through to the massive defences to protect Morpeth Town, its northern bypass and Corbridge from flooding, with the Morpeth Town scheme being tested to the limit on a number of occasions since.”

“When coupled with the former core strategies planning objectives lay people, like me, in construction terms can see the changes in seaside Towns like Blyth with the insistence that new homes must be defended for the next 100 yrs from flooding with houses being built much higher to ensure protection such as the new shared ownership homes in Blyth’s public harbour area.”

 Councillor Cartie summed up her chat with us with: “It's a pity that we now have a simple‘Local Plan’ that seems dedicated to development in place as the breeding of oysters in the River Blyth estuary would have been caught up in the former core at some point and helped along and I really do hope this trial

breeding station is a success as it will aid the protection our softer seaside areas  from winter damage once the creatures find new homes off Northumberland’s shoreline.”

Labour Leader asks where Northumberland Conservatives wasted Cowpen Road Bypass Cash?

 A  silly Tory style spin attack from the Deputy Leader of Northumberland County Council, regional top Tory Councillor Richard Wearmouth has led Labour Group Leader Councillor Scott Dickinson to ask ‘where have the Tories  spent or hidden the cash set aside for this project’

Following Councillor Wearmouths outburst, Labour leader Coun Scott Dickinson hit back at Coun Wearmouth's comments:

He said: "The Labour Party had a feasibility study and a route identified in 2017 and the money allocated in the budget. The Conservatives halted it and dithered and delayed to what is now a crisis point for the people of Blyth”.

“It is impossible to get in and out of Blyth. It is all about the last six years. They have dithered and delayed and done nothing and they let builders develop homes over the route of the relief road due to their incompetence.”

“It just keeps getting pushed back. If they had followed the Labour plan it would have been built”

The ‘New’ Northumberland Council  was reborn as a unitary Council from seven former district councils and a traditional county council in 2009 yet Councillor Wearmouth stated that the Labour Party were to blame for the lack of progression on this project. Councillor Dickinson reminded him that the Conservatives under his stewardship had been in power for longer than Labour in the 'new' Unitary County Council set up.

Councillor Dickinson also said: “Northumberland Conservatives announced they would be borrowing £304Million to take their borrowing well over £1Billion in their recent budget statement. Some of this borrowing should be used to replace the missing money for this project in Labour’s 2017 budget and Blyth relief road and its cross town roads built immediately. But this mustn't be a pet project for the Conservatives and their spend, spend, spend on pet projects attitude has Northumberland’s debt spiraling out of control and we can’t really see what it's being spent on.”

 

I agree with the TUC Local people need the Tories to launch an emergency budget ASAP, says Councillor Liz Simpson.

 

With families suffering the massive problems caused by Conservative mismanagement of the economy and their beloved friends the investors, who sat back and harvested £millions from retail during the pandemic expecting the same levels of riches and not wanting the fast flowing money taps turned off Councillor Liz Simpson Northumberland Labour deputy leader fully supports the calls from the TUC to bring an emergency budget to Parliament as soon as possible.

Councillor Simpson a retired Branch Chairperson for the GMB who represents Newbiggin Central and East ward on Northumberland County Council told us that:"families whether working or claiming benefits are feeling the pressure of this Government's mismanagement of the economy, with costs rising 10 times faster than wages and 17 times faster than basic state pensions, people in all age groups from Newbiggin by the Sea need the government to U-turn and redefine the money in their pockets through setting a budget that doesn't ignore people at the expense of maintaining the lifestyles of the 7% of the nation who sit on massive fortunes."

" Families are facing the worst squeeze on their finances since the 1950's, with those on minimum wage £200 per annum worse off as energy bills have risen by 54% last week, with bills pre October when another huge rise is predicted averaging £2000 a year in real terms, with the 6.6% rise in the national living wage failing to keep up with inflation."

" This Government also decided to attack pensioners by deciding to break the Triple Lock and only increase the state pension by CPI rather than earnings raising the basic State Pension by £373 a year leaving pensioners having to make a critical choice every week when they shop and have to pay their increased bills, the Tory led Northumberland County Council haven't helped with them setting the highest council tax in England"

Councillor Simpson summed up her chat with us with: "I hope everyone who reads the article signs the TUC's petition".

https://www.megaphone.org.uk/petitions/rishi-sunak-get-back-to-parliament-and-present-an-emergency-budget

Councillor Lynne Grimshaw Welcomes the Rubbish Rule-Changes?

As both a County Councillor and an Ashington Town Councillor Lynne Grimshaw welcomes the new rule changes that have been designed to try to stop the national rise in fly tipping incidents.

The new rules require Councils to increase the amount of waste they collect to help tackle the ‘epidemic’ of fly tipping, some of the changes will be to ensure households can tip DIY waste for free and that the Government expects Councils to increase their recycling efforts to make it easy for families without access to transport to dispose of household waste and bulky furniture correctly by making collection free of charge.

The Government is proposing to put some additional cash into this project by paying for extra CCTV surveillance cameras to be fitted in fly tipping blackspots.

Councillor Grimshaw told us that: “ along with my colleagues at Ashington Town Council I have a great interest in the ‘Keep Britain Tidy’ campaigns and I wholeheartedly support the ‘new deal’ for residents as Ashington is one of the Towns in Northumberland with high rates of transport deprivation and with huge numbers of households with low access to vehicles.

The system of recycling items which can’t be put into your recycling bin needs full access to a vehicle to take items to your local recycling centre at present and the help offered in the new paper from the Government will certainly aid a good number of people living in Northumberland as all charges for disposal are hopefully being scrapped.”

“Although I also welcome the inclusion of CCTV into the funding arrangements from Government I hope this is ‘New Money’ and Councils don’t have to resite their current CCTV Camera stock into these areas as they are currently used in places of need to protect people, I will certainty be asking at the Audit meetings of the
County Council to ensure this isn’t another austerity rip off from Westminster.”

‘Proper’ Destination Signage Is needed for Blyth

 

Councillor Kath Nisbet, the Town and County Councillor for Croft Ward which covers much of the Town Centre of Blyth was very pleased with the news from Parliament just before it closed for its very long Easter break that 7000 brand new offshore windmills was the prime choice to kick start the replacement UK’s energy revolution using renewable energy.

With the Port of Blyth and its now world famous blade turbine testing centre sitting in Croft Ward, ‘ORE Catapult’ and a newly proposed larger offshore industry training centre about to be built in the Towns South Harbour, Councillor Nisbet welcomes the news from Parliament. “It's great that the growth of this much needed renewable energy program for offshore windmills will energise further the work of companies based in the River Blyth basin and hopefully lift the number of local people employed in this industry, which will benefit our Town Centre greatly.”

She also said:” I am not from a seafaring background but looking at our Town’s history and charts in the Library, Blyth appears to be a very prominent eastern seaboard port that sailors can find quite easily which offers shelter from storms as well as its current import, export and business uses.”

“Blyth, Northumberland’s largest Town by far must be one of the few Towns with a very popular theatre, The Phoenix, along with a well known non-league football club Blyth Spartans which doesn’t have enough signage for its Town Centre let alone brown signs for our attractions other than the beach area. This growth of powerful companies entering the world energy markets surrounding the River Blyth Estuary should be a catalyst for putting Blyth on the signage map of Britain”.

"That said I also believe, now that major industry is planned to be sited in the river Blyth estuary that the County Council, businesses and the Town and Parish Council's in this area need to campaign hard to have Blyth's travel status increased and it become a 'destination by road' and at least gain equal status with places like Alnwick, Ashington, Berwick, Morpeth and Seahouses gaining signage not just from our beach to the town centre but from the western bypass, the  A1 in Northumberland and the A19 corridor."

 

Councillor Eileen Cartie concerned about latest report from Price Waterhouse Cooper

 

 "UK households face historic fall in living standards"

Northumberland County Councillor Eileen Cartie, a community worker in the Town of Blyth is very concerned at how inflation is affecting residents of the Town and damaging family cohesion.

The latest UK economic outlook from Price Waterhouse Cooper predicts inflation will hit 8.4% later this year. 

The rise in living costs will wipe 2% off household incomes, equivalent to about £900 or as much as £1,300 for the poorest families. If the Ukraine crisis worsens, inflation could peak at 11 %. 

PwC also warns. The economy will grow at a slower-than-expected rate of 3.8% in 2022, down from the 4.5% previously expected and last year's record 7.4% expansion, the latest report suggests.

Councillor Cartie pointed out that "It is clear in my mind that much of the causes of this inflationary period were avoidable if the Government had kept it's eye on the ball for the last decade as its not all down to the war in Ukraine." 

"The neglect and sole interest in applying austerity to all areas outside the Capital is a planned attack by the London centric Tory Government that is being felt by many households children and businesses based in Blyth and beyond". 

"The improvements that staycations through the pandemic brought to Northumberland and the North's tourism businesses will be feeling great pressure from rising costs this year and I'm concerned that many families, their children and residents already struggling across the County will be permanently damaged through the cuts and as this Tory Government puts it 'choices' people have to make, it's my belief that Rishi Sunak and Michael Gove must share the same middle name, 'Hobson'!

 

Cowpen and Blyth families need to take up Social Tariff Broadband to help them through this difficult time say’s Blyth Town Mayor?

 

The current mayor of the Town of Blyth and County Councillor for Cowpen Ward, Councillor Margaret Richardson, is very concerned that local residents aren't taking up social tariff broadband when recent data shows that the area of Cowpen and Cowpen/Kitty Brewster sits locked into the top 10% of most deprived wards nationally with well less than average income levels in most households in fact some of the lowest household incomes in the Country.

Councillor Richardson told us at Northumberland News that: “The take up of social tariff broadband is extremely low, sitting just above 1% of the almost ten million people eligible for cheaper broadband have taken up the offer.”

“Families in Cowpen who are on Universal Credit or a number of other benefits such as Income-related Jobseeker's Allowance, Employment and Support Allowance, Personal Independent Payment (PIP), Housing Benefit, and Pension Credit can benefit from the scheme with some companies offering the service for other additional claimable benefits”

Councillor Richardson also pointed us towards a statement recently released by the The Good Things Foundation, which campaigns on behalf of the digitally excluded, described data poverty as an issue that has "grown significantly over the past two years during the pandemic".

It warned increases to the cost of living "will only put further pressure on those on the lowest incomes, who are already having to make stark choices between having the internet connection they need and heating their house or feeding their family".

 “As the Mayor for the Town of Blyth and a Cowpen Ward Councillor I know how people struggle with their decision making of how to spend the low incomes they have to live on, these lower cost broadband schemes will help close the gap between the haves and the have nots and will help families who always want their children to do better at school provide the information they need to learn and keep up with their compatriots.”

 

News Ed: the links below may help:

https://www.goodthingsfoundation.org/

https://www.uswitch.com/broadband/guides/broadband-deals-for-low-income-families/?utm_source=braze-marketing&utm_campaign=insight&utm_content=211215-Generic%C2%A0-&utm_term=u-email-marketing-newsletter-active-211214&utm_medium=email&ref=email~marketing~insight~211215-Generic%C2%A0&customer_id=21792e28-d4bc-4673-9447-c806012e8251&utm_adgid=61b9e802c6e3c1b55aabc33ac833a0fb

 

Councillor Liz Simpson reminds us all that Council Policy has run out at the most difficult time for children since the 1950's

 

Councillor Liz Simpson who represents Newbiggin Central and East ward which is home to the largest number of children and families living in deprivation in the whole of Northumberland has reminded the Council that it's time to look at two major time expired policies which drive the Council's view of how to help children achieve and guide their needs going forward.

The Council's policy for early years which ran out in 2021 has had an update applied for the youngest people in society, it is ambitious and attempts to identify the individual needs of children. Its children's plan, covering all age groups, runs out this year. The numbers of children and families requiring to use the services covered by the policies have been very constant and covering consistent numbers for many years.

The recent social and economic changes facing families will scope even more children into categories covered by the policies. Numbers are expected to grow rapidly this year and sit at a much higher level in forthcoming years until wages and benefits catch up with the soaring rate of inflation.

Councillor Simpson said:"Due to the Government's cost of living crisis and the credit crunch we need to think hard and avoid a light touch update to policies that protect children and ensure we grown-ups elected as Councillors design essential change governance that will supply and increase the help to young people in need"

Experienced Councillors from the largest opposition group on the Council, Northumberland Labour, have offered their services to review Council policies but video evidence from the last full Council showed that the Conservative administration have no interest in sharing information and rejected the offer.

Councillor Simpson is rightly concerned that only Councillors from wealthier wards will contribute to the formation of the new policies and Labour will only be involved in the scrutiny of these documents, a very weak position to be in when policies are being designed. 

She also told us " these policies must be altered, possibly redesigned and stiffened to suit the changing needs of children and families at a time when the Council has lost its leading officer from Children's Services, Mrs McAvoy, to another local authority and the Conservative administration have broken into three infighting groups leaving me with no confidence that the correct improvements to help children through this disastrous period will be applied and we will end up with a great opportunity missed for both the Council and those we serve."

 

Living or simply surviving? Labour Councillor Lynne Grimshaw extremely concerned about the pensions catastrophe!

Bothal Ward in Ashington is very similar to many areas across the North-East of England suffering from a post industrial or mining activity past. 

People strive to keep their homes in order and the public face they purport is one of neatness and love for the places where many were born, worked and lived most of their lives. Its often been said that like homing pigeons those from the North-East who have left for work often come back to their nest and family when they retire.

The picture painted with the words above don't illustrate the reality of life behind the heavy curtains keeping the winter chills from invading bedroom and living spaces as the problems older people face through Government policy is about to get worse due to mismanagement and austerity measures doled out by the bucketful onto those who aren't able to stop nature and have got older.

The Government, hellbent over the last 11yrs on punishing those who rely on the State to live have now decided that it's easy to form a two tier society led by ignoring the plight of the elderley as they don't vote in high enough numbers to affect the spin put out by Tories and therefore don't really matter.

During 2021 the Tories stopped the Triple Lock on state pensions designed to keep problems of inflation from the doorsteps of Europe's lowest paid pensioners and 'offered' in the words of the Chancellor an increase in line with the Consumer Price Index (CPI) for the relevant reference period (the year to September 2021 to be paid for the financial year 2022-2023) and offer that always sits behind both time and reality.

This means the basic State Pension will increase to £141.85 per week and the full rate of new State Pension will increase to £185.15. 

Councillor Lynne Grimshaw the Labour Party Town and County Councillor for Bothal Ward in Ashington is deeply concerned for the residents in the Ward and told us " What a mess this Government has forced onto pensioners, with inflation running up towards 11% they open their sweaty palms and give out three and a half percent. They have caused a deep living standards division between older and younger pensioners but only publish the top line figure for new pensioners and rarely engage with the press about the basic pensioners who currently outnumber full higher rate pensioners by 81%." 

" Its dreadful that if you were a man born before 6April 1951 or a woman born before 6 April 1953 you suffer a differential of £43:30 per week in comparison with your contemporaries yet you live in the same society with the same costs and the same rate of inflation but this Government ignores your plight gives you an increase well under the level of inflation they have caused through their mismanagement of the economy and have no plan to close the gap other than to starve you out and on top of that keep new pensioners nailed in well below what the same Government class as the 'living wage'"

"I'm extremely concerned that in order to put on their accepted lovely public face, elderly residents in Bothal will suffer and put pride before food and heating, unfortunately it's built into their DNA. I will be urging relatives to keep an eye on the elderly and seek help from wider society and not be too proud to accept help from charities such as Age Concern and foodbanks and check if yourvrelative is entitled to benefits such as pension credits".