09/09/2013 Look North (East Yorkshire and Lincolnshire)

six. On BBC One,

Good evening and welcome to BBC Look North. The headlines tonight. With a

growing population, Boston is told to prove its case for more

government funding. The very significan influx of Eastern

Europeans who are here to work has created strain on the provision of

services across the borough. After 80,000 people go to the Freedom

Festival, is it enough for Hull to win City of Culture? It demonstrates

what a great city Hull is, what a great cultural offer it's got.

How increasing litter from beaches on the East Coast is killing our sea

birds. Green with envy. The baker whose new

shop front is turning heads in Louth. There have been thunderstorms

around today, join me later for the forecast.

England, and today Boston in Lincolnshire spelled out to the

government why it should get extra money from the government. People in

the area say services including health and education are under

massive pressure. From sleepy market town to multi—cultural melting pot.

The changes in Boston have been profound. It's claimed more than 60

languages are now spoken here and that brings with it pressures and

costs. One of the problems is getting those patients understood by

the doctors and nurses. We employ a translator, we have done for the

last 18 months, who sits in with the doctors and nurses specifically to

translate for the patient. So we make sure there's a full medical

history. Census figures show that in 2001, nearly 56,000 people lived in

the town, but now that figure is nearly 65,000. Up by more than 15%.

Much of this recent growth has come from Eastern European migrants

working in the fields and factories of Lincolnshire.

Population pressure has been a long running concern in this town. But

now the council is claiming that the official figures actually

underestimate Boston's rapid growth and they're calling for special help

from the government. That of course means more money but the Minister

who could provide it wants more evidence that it's needed. I put a

challenge out to the council itself National Statistics is still

underestimating, and I understand the case they put, particularly with

houses of multiple occupation, I am happy to work with them to see how

we can evidence that in a way that we can look at the funding formula.

The strain is felt across the system. There are, for example, in

one of the excellent primary schools in the centre of Boston, Park

School, 68% of the children in that school don't have English as a first

language and there are 16 or 17 different languages.

This is a town where people have taken to the streets to protest at

the impact of growing numbers of immigrants. But there are also those

who believe population growth is a benefit to the system not a drain on

it. We've got more people coming through the doors to look for

volunteering work. Coming over from eastern Europe, they may not have

exactly the skills that are needed for this country, they're not

translateable, and it helps them to enhance their job prospects. The

meeting with the minister was described as constructive. But it'll

be February next year at the earliest before any decisions are

made about extra money from Whitehall to help this growing town.

I asked Councillor Peter Bedford, the leader of Boston Borough

Council, why Boston should get more money from the government?

Quite simply because of the number of migrant population that we now

have in Boston which the government are not paying us for. But the

government says the figures are 65,000, are you saying that is not

accurate? We think it is ten or 12,000 on top of that. We are

collecting the figures from GP surgeries and the doctors throughout

the Boston Borough area. You believe the senses is out by about 12,000?

Absolutely. That is our estimation. Have you been fobbed off by the

minister, or are you taking this as a challenge? We are taking it very

much as a challenge and have not been fobbed off. The minister was

very good this morning. He listened to the people around the table. We

had health providers, schools, everybody around this table and the

Minister said that he was so pleased to have come and heard it all. Can

you prove it? I am sure that we can. And if you cannot, you just have to

lump it ? If the government have new initiatives, they can try them out

in Boston. Do you think that Boston should be a special case quez—mac

yes, I do. The Minister is from great Yarmouth. They have a similar

problem. Should towns with high levels of

population growth get extra money to fund more health and education?

In a moment. Police say there'll be no further

action against a UKIP councillor accused of online racist comments.

The head of Hull's bid to be UK City of Culture in four years says the

weekend's successful Freedom Festival has improved the city's

chances of winning. It's estimated 80,000 people attended the three day

festival. Caroline Bilton reports. From morning, until night. For three

whole days, thousands of people came to experience Hull's Freedom

Festival. The moment when the Viking ship left the Wilberforce statue,

the New York brass band were playing and all the young people walking in

the procession started singing. Suddenly there was a sense this was

going to be really special. This was the start. 1,000 people

parading through the streets with torches, culminating in a recital of

Martin Luther King's I Have A Dream speech. Thank God almighty! We are

free at last! But could Hull dare to dream and become a City Of Culture?

It was a question many were asking. It does do wonders for a place. It

would be great. Without being biased it really deserves it because it has

changed a lot, I think, in the last five or ten years. Hull has got more

to offer. It deserves it. From indie band The 1975 performing

to a capacity crowd to local artists entertaining the younger generation

in Queens Gardens, this was a platform for talent and a taste of

what could be coming Hull's way should its bid be successful. Things

are on the up. It is down to people trying, really. Looking at Hull in a

positive light, rather than a negative light. I think this event

has been a real calling card for our City Of Culture bid. It demonstrates

what a great city Hull is, what a great cultural offer it's got and

also that we can put together really fantastic events, really

This street was packed with people world—class, high—class events.

This street was packed with people 24 hours ago. The festival is all

but a memory now. It was a platform for local talent, a spectacle for

those watching. Organisers are hoping it has been enough to catch

the eye of the City Of Culture judges.

And the director of Hull's bid for city of culture Andrew Dixon will be

live on our late news at 10.25 here on BBC One.

Police investigating the murder of a newborn baby in South Lincolnshire

say a 16—year—old girl arrested is receiving hospital treatment. The

body of a baby boy was found at a house in Baston near Stamford last

Thursday. A postmortem examination showed the child died from an airway

obstruction. A new school has opened in Hull

today for 600 children who will also attend classes on a Saturday. The

Boulevard School is the first so called free—school in the city. It

won't be controlled by the local authority and has more freedom to

teach outside the traditional curriculum, as well as setting its

own term times. The first thing is it's about

further parental choice. Schools being planned in collaboration with

Hull City Council. There's long been identified a need for a school in

this particular area. Talking to parents, and families, and people in

this community, they are looking forward to having their school in

their community. Lincolnshire Police say they're

taking no further action against a UKIP councillor who was accused of

posting racist comments on Facebook. Chris Pain has always denied the

allegations. Gemma Dawson is following the story. What's been

Councillor Pain's response? Well, Chris Pain's always maintained

his innocence, claiming his Facebook account was hacked. Since May,

Lincolnshire Police have been investigating allegations that he

posted racist comments on the internet. Today, though, they've

announced that they'll be taking no further action against him or the

wider UKIP membership locally. This afternoon, Chris Pain told Look

North he's relieved after Police confirmed the news. They confirmed

last week that I've not got a case to answer and the case was closed.

Obviously, it's been a very saddening crime, especially as I've

got friends of all nationalities who I holiday with on a regular basis.

It's been very upsetting for myself, for my family for these false

accusations. Lincolnshire Police say they take all allegations of hate

crime extremely seriously, but they admit there are many factors that

make such an investigation very complex. In a statement, Detective

Inspector Andy Wardell, urges people to contact the police immediately if

they see any racist comments online and not to post any responses

because he says that can potentially hinder an investigation. I have

contacted the UK Independence Party as well this afternoon, but they've

declined to comment. Thank you.

Still ahead tonight. 150,000 people see the world's best

riders at Burghley. Seeing red. The baker whose new

green shop front is turning heads in Louth.

Take the photographs coming in. If you have one you are proud of, send

it in. Good evening. So many complaints

about the Thursday forecast. It did not rain in Grimsby at all on

Friday. I have not come on here to listen to your viewers whingeing.

I have come on here to give an accurate detailed forecast.

I was in Headingley in the pouring rain all day.

There have been some big thunderstorms this afternoon.

Tomorrow will be windy and cool, especially towards the coast.

Coastal Gail Plews Mike are possible. —— coastal gales.

Thankfully, those storms will push out to sea. There will be scattered

showers following in from the North, but we will ten Toulouse their

intensity. —— tend to lose. Temperatures of eight or nine

Celsius. The sun will rise in the morning. Roundabout six 25. There

will be some brightness in the West, at coastal areas will see patchy

rain coming down from the North. That patchy rain could extend

inland. West of that, it will be mostly dry. But the wind will pick

up. It will feel pretty chilly in the afternoon. Highs of 55 degrees.

Patchy rain later. Thursday is looking not too bad, mostly dry.

That is the accurate forecast. Don't you worry about these, I would

apply to them. —— I will reply. See you tomorrow.

There were tears of joy at the Burghley Horse Trials for one local

rider who had the best time for a new rider at the prestigious event.

Alex Postolowsky thanked her horse Ginger and her mum. As 150,000

people turned up to watch the world's best riders, millions of

pounds changed hands at the event's fashionable shopping stalls. Jill

Archbold reports. At 28, Alex is young for a top event

rider. Her debut could not have gone better. I did not think it would

actually happen. It was amazing. Alex left with a grant to help pay

for training. It is amazing. She has tried so hard with little help, it

is fantastic. Gary finished in one of the top... He is always looking

alert. And therefore owners who championed the sport as well. When I

was a child, I used to watch it on the television. I used to come with

my family and I never thought I would be in a position to have a

horse here. And then there would be —— and then there were those who

were simply interested in the sunshine. It is a lovely,

entertaining day. For equestrian fans Burghley is all about spending

time getting close to the action. Here at the trade stands, it is

about spending of a different kind, proving that shopping is just as

important as show—jumping. Burghley Horse Trials, other than the horse

trials themselves, as a shopping venue, is billed as the best

shopping outside Bond Street. Shopping or show—jumping, this

internationally recognised competition shows no sign of

slowing. Would you challenge someone who left

litter on a beach? According to one marine expert, plastic litter on the

beach is killing hundreds of sea birds, badly affecting important

colonies north of Bridlington. Paul Rose says if people leave litter, we

should challenge them or pick it up ourselves. His research for

tonight's Inside—Out here on BBC One found dead birds with stomachs full

of plastic. Here's a look at the programme.

You might wonder where we would be without plastic in our lives. But we

are not the only species to have developed a special relationship

with the synthetic material. At Britain's biggest mainland gannet

colony at Bempton near Bridlington, generations of birds have learnt to

live with our waste, lining their nests with discarded plastic netting

and ropes. But wildlife and plastics do not mix well. And to find out

more, I am going to get closer to a sea bird than I have ever done

before. It's not a pretty sight, seeing what these birds have eaten,

but it is the best way of gauging how much trapped plastic is being

consumed. Research shows that starvation is a common cause of

death. I spoke to Paul Rose and asked him

how so much plastic ended sea.

It blows in. It is us. We consume a huge amount of plastic. And either

accidentally, or deliberately, we end up with loads of it coming down

the rivers, coming off the land and dumped in the sea itself. Then the

ocean currents bring it around and dump it back on the beach. How do

you feel about people when you see them leave the beach and they just

leave their rubbish behind? We can't have people doing that. Things do

blow a way when you're having a family picnic and the wind comes up.

Of course there will be accidental bits of plastic. But people actually

leave their rubbish on the beach. I have seen it. I think a bit of

direct action. Having in the last few years focused on marine debris,

I am pretty good at going up to people and telling them they cannot

leave it. If there's any debate, I will pack it up myself. Tell us

about the fulmar. You found some rubbish in its stomach when you did

an autopsy. Yes, all the beautiful fulmars that we are finding on the

coast of Britain, in their stomachs is plastic. It is just amazing. Take

a tiny piece of plastic, when we find that in the bird's stomach, the

equivalent size is 100 times. It is like having a plastic dinner plate

in our stomach. Every single bird, we cut them open and found plastic.

Do the birds then learn to live with it or does it cost them their lives?

It costs them their lives. They live with it for a little while, but it

takes up room that would have food in it. The plastic degrades and puts

toxins into the body and kills the bird. Would you challenge someone

who left litter on a beach? Would you pick it up yourself? What should

be done to reduce plastic in the sea? That programme...

A baker from Louth in Lincolnshire who took on the government over what

became known as the pasty tax is in trouble with his local council over

the colour of his shop. Although many shoppers like the freshly

painted bright green front of Pocklington's Bakery, it breaks

strict rules on character and appearance laid down by English

Heritage. Jessica Lane has the story.

Whether you call it lime green, apple green or bottle green, it has

got some seeing red. Just days after this shop front in Louth was

repainted, the owners got a letter from the council telling them the

new shade was not in keeping with the local conservation area. We knew

we could not change the colour to a different colour, but we were not

aware that we could not change the shade of green to a lighter shade of

green. It's disappointing. We tried to enhance the marketplace by giving

it a fresher colour and we appear to have done something wrong. East

Lindsey District Council says that the paint should be changed because

Louth is an historic town and shops should use colours that suit their

age and character. It said sensitive because this building is

Grade II listed. English Heritage says that means it is recognised as

being of architectural and historic interest. Listed building, times

change and I think it is important to move with the times. I don't see

why they should change it really. It's tidy, it's clean. Looks great.

It seems a bit ridiculous really. It looks all right to me. It is

preposterous. They are spending money to get this altered. It

brightens the place up. Pocklington's are no strangers to a

battle. When the government introduced VAT on hot baked goods,

commonly known as the pasty tax, they travelled to London to protest.

But they say they are not going to take on East Lindsey District

Council and English Heritage on this issue and they will, in fact, be

changing the paint to a more palatable shade soon.

In Rugby League, both our teams are preparing for the Super League

playoffs. Hull KR lost their final league game of the season yesterday.

They were beaten 34—22 by the London Broncos. The Robins now go to St

Helens for their play off on Saturday. Hull FC entertain Catalans

on Friday night. In football, Scunthorpe United are

still looking for their first win since the opening day of the season.

They went in front thanks to a Niall Canavan header at Northampton this

weekend. But the home side equalised with just 12 minutes left through

Clive Platt. This goal meant the game finished

1—1. A professional dancer from North East Lincolnshire has been

paired with one of the BBC's best known faces in Strictly Come

Dancing. Kevin Clifton from Waltham with

Grimsby will dance with the presenter Susanna Reid in the

series. The couples were revealed on Saturday and they now have some

practice time before the next show. It was one of the last weekends of

the year for big summer festivals and events. Over the last three

days, we have been out along with tens of thousands of people who have

been enjoying what's on offer in East Yorkshire and Lincolnshire.

59 years ago I was in that. I was 12 years old at the time and I had a

ride in it. What the men went through during

World War One is just unbelievable. Very exciting and vibrant. We like

the dancers. take it all in. It's got a nice,

family feel to it as well. I very busy weekend and are part of

the world. Russia has offered to break the

deadlock over Syria's chemical weapons.

And council leaders in Boston have said that there figures are 20%

bigger as they plead for extra money from the government. Tomorrow's

weather. A dry bright start, clouding over with rain spreading

from the north, especially in coastal areas. Feeling chilly.

Maximum temperature 13 Celsius. On immigration, about time the

government took some notice. Boston is in ruins and needs help. Clear

says, the government doesn't need to get more evidence. When I lived in

Spain, if I wanted a translator, I had to pay for it myself, so why

should we pay for it here for migrants? Good night.