10/01/2012 Look North (East Yorkshire and Lincolnshire)

Welcome to Look North. The headlines. Plans are being put at

risk as paramedics said ambulance staff borrowed a word. I think

patients are being put at risk and it is a matter of time before

somebody loses their life. War's family appeal for help three weeks

after she went missing -- and Diann Conboy's family.

An investigation says nothing could have stopped the Goole floods.

And we find out if the Iron Lady has provoked a North-South divide.

Stay mild the next couple of days but cold by Friday. The details

coming up shortly. -- staying mild. Good evening. It is being claimed

that patients' lives are being put at risk across Yorkshire because of

overwork ambulance staff. A paramedic has told the BBC that

crews at being regularly asked to work over their 12 hour shifts

without breaks. He says some staff are asked to cover a huge distances

to help other areas of the service need response targets. The

Yorkshire Ambulance Service denies the claims. We will hear from them

in a moment. First, here is Vicky Johnson.

Ambulance crews operating across East Yorkshire at increasingly been

stretched to the limit. This employee, who wants to remain

anonymous, has had his comments revoiced. Morale is very low,

basically because we are being worked into the ground. We work 12

hour shifts and very often we do not get breaks within that period.

His concerns have been echoed by union leaders, who say increasing

demand combined with staff shortages are causing problems.

They are running the cruise into the ground. As a trade union, we

have never liked 12 hour shifts. I think they are far too long for the

type of work paramedics do. Go beyond that, and I think you are

really pushing the boundaries. You cannot drive a lorry for that long.

He does not seem right. Yorkshire Ambulance Service receive

up to 4 million calls a year, and has almost 1,900 frontline staff

who cover approximately 6,000 square miles. Sometimes, crews are

expected to cross county boundaries when there is a surge in demand in

other areas. This member of staff told me they increasing workload

could have tragic consequences for patients. I think patients had

definitely been put at risk and it is a matter of time before somebody

loses their life because the Ramblers does not arrive in time.

The core into ambulance officials, the Yorkshire service is definitely

not overstretched, and they insist that response times here in Hull

area are among the best in the country. -- according to ambulance

officials. Vince Larvin is from the Yorkshire

Ambulance Service. I asked him if services are stretched. Definitely

not. I think anything but. Our response times are proving

otherwise. The government stand -- the Government's standard is 75 %,

and we are achieving almost 90 %. This paramedics says morale is low,

Ships at Toulon and rarely they get proper breaks. Is that fair and

accurate? -- shifts are too long. We take the welfare of staff very

seriously. Unison told us they regained 12 hour shifts because

invariably they do 13 or 14 away days. Why ambulance staff allowed

to do that? It can happen on occasion. It is the nature of the

job. When we put the shift patterns together, we consulted unions and

staff. There was a range of 8, 9 and 10 hour shift patterns

available. Why ambulance staff being sent to other parts of

Yorkshire? Is that so they hit government response times? To put

that into perspective, that happens in all areas. When demand is high

in other areas, we do move resources around. That is

reciprocal. It happens nationally. This paramedics says lives are

being put at risk. Do you accept and agree with him on that?

Absolutely not. I think our response times demonstrate we are

providing some of the best reply -- best response times in the country.

They are really good, not is down to the hard work and commitment of

our staff. Thank you very much. I would like to know your thoughts

on this. What is your experience of the Yorkshire Ambulance Service?

Maybe you work there. What do you think of some of the claims being

made? Is it right that crews apple from one part of the region to

In a moment: One council tries to get thousands of people to change

to one energy supplier. Anybody has been discovered Mayor

Humberside Airport. Police were called to the scene at Great Limber

earlier this afternoon. The area has been cordoned off one

investigations take place. Investigations are continuing into

the death of a woman who died after falling from a block of flats in

Bridlington. It happened on South Marine Drive late last night. A 36-

year-old man is being questioned. An abattoir in Skegness has gone

into administration, putting 26 jobs at risk. Lincolnshire Prime

Meat Company has debts of over �1 million.

It does not matter what you have done away you have been, all we

want is for you to get in touch. Those are the words of Diann

Conboy's family, three weeks after she went missing. Humberside Police

say the public could pets -- the public could play a vital role in

finding the 47-year-old. Woman com -- Diann Conboy. Police

have today revealed she had gone missing ones before. It was back in

October, and she was staying in and out house may Cottingham. Diann's

family have issued a statement through the police calling on

people to check their sheds and garages. Please contact the police

and let us know you are safe. We are missing our mother, daughter,

sister and friend. Diann Conboy was reported missing from her home on

21st December. Police said they have an unconfirmed sighting of her

at Ellerburn Avenue on the 23rd. Searches had focused on the Sir

Henry Cooper schools side before moving to Thwaite Hall in

Cottingham last weekend. Diann's last sighting may have been by a

white colleague here on Ellerburn Avenue. Police are using it as a

starting point as they examine financial records and CCTV across

the area. Police insist there is no connection with the disappearance

of Diann's encore, Michael Conboy, who has been missing since 2009.

But for Diann's family, a difficult time. They edged ahead to get in

touch. He does not matter what anybody else says. It does not

matter what you have done away you have been. We just when you to get

in touch with any of us to let us know it you were safe and well.

Until I is fresh information, the searches that were taking place

have stopped, despite the police and her family becoming

increasingly concerned as each day passes.

We will continue to follow that story.

A North Norfolk District Council is paying up to �25,000 of taxpayers'

money to retrain staff at the Cromer Crab Company. Youngs, which

owns the company, is still in talks to secure the future of the factory,

but at least 70 jobs are under threat. The council has asked for

the cash to be reimbursed. Her rail travel from Yorkshire to

London could be about to get much quicker following the announcement

there will be a high-speed rail link developed. The trains will

travel at up to 250 miles away. It means you will be able to get from

Leeds to London in one hour and 20 minutes. But it will be over 20

years before the line get built. With energy costs expected to rise

by 27 % over the next eight years, one Lincolnshire council has

decided to take matters into its own hands. South Holland District

Council is hoping to persuade all of its 37,000 residents to switch

to a single energy supplier. It is all about bulk discount, as Paul

Murphy reports. June and Peter believe that if

their energy costs keep rising, they will struggle to pay the bills.

They are eating and their heating or me to be carefully calculated --

they're eating and heating. Last winter, we did not suffer but my

pocket did. They are joining the new fuel tariff register. It allows

a community to bulk-buy discount energy from a single supplier. All

37,000 households in his council area had been invited to sign up.

If we could get everybody together to buy from the same contract, if

we could save 10 %, that would be about �4 million we have saved for

the district. That would give the shops and Traders extra income.

a household spends more than 10 % on -- more than 10 % of income on

energy, it is classed as fuel poverty. Around 18 % of households

in England fall into this category. In South Holland, that figure is

around 25 %. We are fortunate that we both have small pensions to back

away state pensions. There are people who rely on the state

pension. I think it is getting harder, and will do. If enough

households can be encouraged to sign up to this game, the council

hopes to begin negotiations with energy suppliers within weeks.

Interesting idea. Thank you for watching this Tuesday night. Still

ahead: Plans to give a local landmark a new lease of life.

And more than 20 years after leaving office, Margaret Thatcher

If you have a picture you are proud of, send it in. Tonight's is of the

Tony says, last night, Paul suggested we go and look at the

magnificent full moon, then added, you might find it more interesting

than his forecast. He was right! I did and it was. He said, is there

another tonight? It is a bit cloudy. Tell us about

last night! Read the weather. Oh, you do not

read it, do you? You elaborate! The next 24 hours is a mild one.

They will be a lot of cloud around, possibly enough to produce a little

drizzle. Temperatures in Bridlington could be up to 12

degrees. There could be some drizzle for the Yorkshire wolds. We

had a nice spell of sunshine. I think the cloud will thicken

through this evening and overnight sufficiently to produce some

drizzle. It looks generally as if it should be dry and frost free

again. Lowest temperatures about six or seven. The sun will rise at

8:15am, setting at fora 5:00pm. -- setting up fora 5:00pm. Perhaps a

bit of dampness around. Any drizzle will quickly die away, then it is

generally dry but cloudy. You will see some great developing. Top

temperatures will probably be in Bridlington, perhaps it see as well.

Elsewhere, around 11. Thursday will be worked at first with patchy rain,

but it tends sunny in the afternoon. Some frost on Thursday night, then

Friday and Saturday look colder, but generally dry with some

You get very touchy about the forecast! See you tomorrow.

Read your autocue! An investigation looking into the cause of flooding

in Goole last summer found more rain fell than the drainage systems

are designed to cope with. You might remember that last August,

it's estimated that more than 64 millimetres of rain "probably" fell

on Goole in just one hour. The council say this is a once in a

lifetime event. Yorkshire Water has now agreed to spend 275 thousand

pounds on a study looking at the town's drainage systems. Our

environment correspondent Siobhan Robbins is in Goole now. Just

It was really serious. Two weeks of rain fell in a few hours and this

cul-de-sac was an area which was badly hit. To give you an

impression of how bad things got, one resident told me he was wading

through water up to his knees. He is over 6 ft tall. That is the

point of the report to look at what caused the floods and how to

prevent a repeat in the future. This was the result of a few hours'

rain. A freak summer downpour which left many houses in Goole under

water. Five months many victims like Judy blame the cutting out of

three pumps at the pumping station for worsening the situation. When

the pumps were switched back on, we could see the water going back down

the drains. It was quite clear at something had happened. Up until

then, the water was rising. today's report paints a different

picture it blames exceptional rain. It says most system's would be

overwhelmed. But in the future to recommends agencies work together

more that a new warning system is put in and pumping stations don't

shut off during heavy rain. We have carried out a million pounds of

investment at the pumping station, we have refurbished the pumps and a

confident there will be no repeat in terms of those pumps going idle

at a critical point. Yorkshire Water is fitting new monitors which

will measure the amount of water in drains to stop a repeat. They'll

work with the council over the next year to pinpoint any areas which

could flood again. We seem to be getting exceptional events every

four or five years. It is something we need take up nationally because

the guidelines are the sewers must be designed for a one in 13 event

but one in 30 is happening every one in five. We need to move the

marker post. But for some this doesn't go far enough. Jonathon

Taylor had to fit a whole new kitchen. He thinks victims should

be compensated. We have had the flooding, the

heartache, the headaches. The property damage and sofa made it is

too late. These things should have been in place beforehand. Today's

recommendations still have to be agreed by the council's cabinet as

they'll decide how best to protect homes in the future.

The Cabinet will meet next week to discuss a host of recommendations

held in a report. One of the main ideas is agencies working more

closely together and that has already begun. A survey was

commissioned looking at the Suez, trains and ditches to pinpoint any

weak spots and defend and better in the future.

And this might be another story you've got a view on. Maybe you

were affected by those floods last year - are you reassured by these

measures? Do you think more needs to be done to avoid a repeat, and

if so, what? As always, there's the email and text details for you now.

And thanks for all of your tweets, emails, texts and phone messages on

our story about the Hull cyclist who's taken to filming every single

journey he takes. Simon Mason has spent hundreds of pounds on special

glasses with a camera attached. He's done it after becoming

concerned for his safety, in case he's involved in an accident. The

camera records everything he sees while out on his bike. There was a

huge response last night's. Thank Winky for all of those. -- thank

you. Over the years it attracted stars like Michael Ball, Ben Elton

and Jim Davidson, but sixteen years ago The Ritz cinema and live venue

in Lincoln closed its doors. Since then, it's been used as a pub but

now a local community group has come forward and they want to

restore it to how it used to be, and it was pretty grand. Simon

Spark has this. It's nearly 16 years since anyone

other than the owners have set foot in the old Ritz cinema on Lincoln's

High Street, and over that time it's badly deteriorated with just a

few signs it was ever a cinema at all. You can see this is originally

where the seats would have been and the screen at the back. The frame

is still there for the screen but it is an empty shell. These are the

only three left. In the projection room there's an old diary logging

any problems with the films like oil on Jurassic Park and dirt on

the piano. But a return last year by the previous owners Barry and

Brenda Stead was a reminder of the stars that used to perform here.

The Colosseum in Rome, Gladiators ready for the spectacle! Look at

this stage. We had a few good nights here. Many good nights.

Every show was a spectacle. They were unique and enjoyed by so many

people. I would see the Hollies. remember the live shows. As you go

up the stairs, the pictures of the stars. Yes, lots of happy memories.

It's this strong sense of connection that's made Pete Genders

want to get the Ritz back to the way it was. And his intention is to

jointly use it as a community project. It is a big part of my

Chartered, my first kiss was here. My big love is for film. I thought

to reopen the centre would be a dream come true. It is not

something we can manage on their own. We do not have the funding to

completely renovated. We need people's health. So this is where

the work begins a large part of which will be finding the estimated

three quarters of a million pound it'll take before Lincoln will be

putting on the Ritz again. The producer told me she sought Trevor

and Simon and then she got to work with me. She has known suffering!

If you have any memories let us know. Hull City has confirmed Nick

Barmby as the club's permanent manager. Barmby took over as

caretaker boss in November when Nigel Pearson moved to Leicester.

He's since led the Tigers to six victories in 11 games. He says it's

a great honour to become manager of his home town club and he's looking

forward to the challenge. Grimsby Town hope to make it ten

unbeaten matches in a row tonight as they travel to Cambridge United

in the Blue Square premier. The Mariners beat Alfreton Town on

Saturday to move within eight points of the play-off places.

Joint manager Rob Scott says tonight's opponents, who are two

places above them, will have something to prove.

It is a good test. We would like to see where we are from early in the

season. We did not play well, it was a different side in terms of

confidence. And how we will play. They went down to 10 men are so

they feel aggrieved it wasn't a fair reflection. And you can hear

full commentary of tonight's game on BBC Radio Humberside's FM

frequency and on the web. Kick off's at quarter to eight, with

build up on Sportstalk which is on She hasn't been the Prime Minister

for more than 20 years but it seems Margaret Thatcher still has the

power to divide the country. The film The Iron lady is pulling in

the audiences down South but seems to be performing less well in more

Northern cities. So how is the film about Grantham's most famous

daughter going down in our part of the world? Emma Massey's been

finding out. The Right Honourable Gentleman

knows we had no choice but to close the school. Launched on Friday, The

Iron Lady tells the story of Margaret Thatcher's rise to power.

The union paymasters have called a strike deliberately to cripple the

economy. But the film seems to have split the country with a

north/south divide. In London it's playing to packed-out cinemas while

in the north it's a very different story. Screen number five. Some

people remember when there was lots of unemployment in the 1980s and

they blame her and the government. With the miners' strike, it was a

defining point which has made people more antagonistic in the

north than the southerners. politics was massive. It stopped

many people working, there was trouble with the unions. They will

not support the film. Most of them are supporting Labour and always

will. Gentlemen, shall we joined the ladies? Deramore Labour

strongholds in the north who may not want to see anything to do with

Margaret Thatcher. They did not want to see it because of her it

was about. So Lady Thatcher may not have been in power since 1990 but

it seems she's still as divisive a character as ever.

That is the tone if we want to strike. Let's get a recap of the

national and regional headlines: London to Birmingham in 45 minutes

- a controversial high speed rail line gets government approval.

Claims that lives are being put at risk as paramedics say ambulance

staff are overworked. And tomorrow's weather: cloudy at times

but mostly dry after a damp start. Some sunny intervals. Top

temperature 11 degrees Celsius, The response on the story about the

claims ambulance staff are overworked. John says you wait too

long for transport because of overstretched staff and Paul

vehicles breaking down. Sarah says I'll girl suffers from croup and we

had to call the ambulance many times and the responses second to

none. The care is outstanding and we thank them. I regularly work

over the end of my shift as a paramedic for the East Midlands and

the service nationwide is overstretched, not enough staff,

vehicles or money to meet demand. I do jobs in Nottingham when I work

on the east coast. The system is in crisis and no one will admit it.