Ms Maskell said she had been suspended for “standing up for my constituents” over welfare reforms. The MP lead a rebellion against the Labour government’s welfare reforms earlier this month which caused it to soften some of its proposals. Ms Maskell said: “The reason why I voted the way I did was because I believe in fighting…

Councillors are voting on a Reform UK request to rescind Durham County Council’s climate emergency pledge.

Both “emergencies” are real and both require a county council to take serious steps to address them as well as all the other major issues that confront it. The Reform councillors are right that the social care crisis is one of the biggest issues facing the NHS and that neither Conservative nor Labour has had…

Opposition councillors in County Durham said they will continually scrutinise decisions made by Reform leaders in charge of Durham County Council and expose any failures.  A motion by Durham County Council’s deputy leader Darren Grimes to rescind the 2019 declaration was approved by Reform councillors on Wednesday.  The Reform councillor said the local authority was…

Councillors are voting on a Reform UK request to rescind Durham County Council’s climate emergency pledge.

A motion by Durham County Council’s deputy leader Darren Grimes to rescind the 2019 declaration was approved despite opposition from cross-party councillors and campaigners.   The decision, confirmed at Wednesday’s county council meeting, is one of the party’s most contentious moves since taking over control of the local authority and is believed to be a UK…

Members of North Yorkshire Council’s executive committee have agreed to dispose of the civic centre at Stone Cross in Northallerton, the former headquarters of Hambleton District Council. The building is set to be sold for an undisclosed fee described as “significant” by council chiefs. The council decided the offices were not needed following the launch…

Sir Keir Starmer confirmed ‘Young Futures Hubs’ will be rolled out this year, in the government’s latest push to half knife crime that continues to rip families apart. At a summit at St James’ Palace in London today (July 15), the PM confirmed eight hubs will be opened this year in areas with high levels of knife crime. Their locations…

Councillors are voting on a Reform UK request to rescind Durham County Council’s climate emergency pledge.

Councillor Richard Eglington will tell council leaders the authority had offered tenants who run businesses in the 19th century shopping centre and market hall “the first of many opportunities” to get clarity and advice from officers. This comes after businesspeople received a letter from the council from Stockton Council, telling them of proposals to “market…