:00:04. > :00:13.Good evening and welcome to BBC Look North. On the programme - the
:00:13. > :00:16.contrasting stories in a challenging economy. We do hear of
:00:16. > :00:20.factory closures and the industry and people cutting back but I
:00:20. > :00:24.cannot stress enough it is the reverse for us. Everyone is cutting
:00:24. > :00:26.down on what their spending and certainly our customers Tonight as
:00:27. > :00:28.fears of another recession grow, we'll hear the differing
:00:28. > :00:31.experiences of people and businesses.
:00:31. > :00:40.A Hull MP tells us getting the Humber Bridge tolls down is key to
:00:40. > :00:44.the area's future. They have to. One of the issues about the economy
:00:44. > :00:47.is removing the barriers to growth in Hull. The tolls across the
:00:47. > :00:49.Humber Bridge are one of those barriers.
:00:49. > :00:52.Also coming up on tonight's programme: The NHS defends sending
:00:52. > :01:02.three senior officials to Florida costing tax payers thousands.
:01:02. > :01:12.And the father and daughter graduation success story. A windy
:01:12. > :01:15.
:01:15. > :01:18.night with some rain later, all the As fears grow of another recession,
:01:18. > :01:21.just how fragile is our economy in East Yorkshire and Lincolnshire.
:01:21. > :01:24.The number of people out of work in our area continues to grow, big
:01:24. > :01:29.names like BAE Systems are cutting posts, but renewable energy
:01:29. > :01:32.companies hold a lifeline. One report this week raised concerns
:01:32. > :01:36.about the skills gap and there are still concerns over the Humber
:01:36. > :01:39.Bridge Tolls. Tonight, we'll have the story of the economy from
:01:39. > :01:49.across the region. We start in Grimsby where one company says it's
:01:49. > :01:50.
:01:50. > :01:54.bucking the manufacturing trend. Phil Connell reports.
:01:54. > :02:00.In times of recession, selling food can be a good idea. Whatever
:02:00. > :02:06.happens, we all need to eat. For this dish company in Grimsby,
:02:06. > :02:10.business has never been better. secret of our success is because we
:02:10. > :02:16.have decided to invest in the future rather than what most people
:02:16. > :02:22.might do it in hard times is to make cuts. We have spoken to
:02:22. > :02:28.consumers about what they think is important. For others, today's
:02:28. > :02:33.gloomy predictions have brought concerns. This organisation in
:02:33. > :02:39.Grimsby has just lost �15,000 of funding. Another victim of councils
:02:39. > :02:46.tightening their belts. It is difficult have allowed their Caporn
:02:46. > :02:52.hand and beg money to keep us going. There may come a time when there is
:02:52. > :02:56.no alternative and the money runs out. Fears of a new recession and
:02:56. > :02:59.impacting differently on manufacturing and local services, a
:02:59. > :03:01.region where the economy is creating winners as well as losers.
:03:01. > :03:04.Phil Connell reporting on how manufacturing and local services
:03:04. > :03:07.are dealing with the downturn. The most recent jobs figures show
:03:07. > :03:13.11,000 more people unemployed in Yorkshire and the Humber and 7,000
:03:13. > :03:21.in the East Midlands. So what's the outlook for those who are facing
:03:21. > :03:25.redundancy or for those who've recently lost their jobs? Emma
:03:25. > :03:29.Massey reports from East Yorkshire. Frank Melton has been working at
:03:29. > :03:34.BAE Systems for 23 years. Last September, the company announced
:03:34. > :03:44.900 job losses. He and his fellow work colleagues are facing
:03:44. > :03:53.redundancy. I will survive one where the other. It is the younger
:03:53. > :03:58.ones, those under 50, who have to think about their families. They
:03:58. > :04:01.can either stop where they are or move. When Pauline King was made
:04:01. > :04:10.redundant from MFI she looked for similar work locally but with no
:04:10. > :04:15.success. So she set up her own business as an entertainer. I think
:04:15. > :04:20.it is there but you need to wait for it. I thought, if I play my
:04:20. > :04:30.cards right, it is not bad. There is work out there but he cannot be
:04:30. > :04:30.
:04:30. > :04:35.afraid of their the lows. Two people having to make their own
:04:35. > :04:42.way in what could possibly end up being a double-dip recession.
:04:42. > :04:46.economy is growing at half the rate in 2011 as it was in 2010. All of
:04:46. > :04:50.us in our constituencies see the effects of this. Whether or not
:04:50. > :04:52.people have managed to find work, when it comes to economic recovery,
:04:52. > :04:55.everyone is looking for some good news.
:04:55. > :04:57.Emma Massey on how unemployment is having an impact in East Yorkshire.
:04:57. > :05:00.Today's figures make disappointing reading for small businesses and
:05:00. > :05:02.they lie at the heart of the economy in Lincolnshire. The
:05:02. > :05:06.county's Federation of Small Businesses says their members face
:05:06. > :05:10.a very difficult future as the economy continues to struggle.
:05:10. > :05:16.Simon Spark has spent the day finding out how this major part of
:05:16. > :05:19.Lincolnshire's economy is facing the challenges.
:05:19. > :05:22.It's a busy, bustling success story. Since its opening in April last
:05:22. > :05:32.year, Caistor's new arts and heritage centre continues to thrive
:05:32. > :05:32.
:05:32. > :05:37.despite launching in an economically challenging year.
:05:37. > :05:43.we opened, we had not a clue as to whether they would get one or 300
:05:44. > :05:48.people through a door. From day one, the cafe takings, which we rely on
:05:48. > :05:53.to sustain the project, has been fairly consistent. You have to keep
:05:53. > :05:59.things fresh. You have to have a reason for people to what to come
:05:59. > :06:03.back again. That is what people are doing. We have come from Scunthorpe.
:06:03. > :06:05.It is so nice here with good coffee. But this is a business run
:06:05. > :06:08.voluntarily. Elsewhere in Lincolnshire, the retail sector has
:06:08. > :06:10.been hit hard with many stores discounting heavily to survive, a
:06:10. > :06:19.problem that's forcing smaller businesses to close, like this
:06:19. > :06:23.ladies fashion shop in Lincoln. releases up for renewal and
:06:23. > :06:27.business is not good enough to renew. I have not got the
:06:27. > :06:31.confidence to renew. I do not want to go and enjoy doing what I am
:06:31. > :06:34.doing but I cannot afford to stay. After eight years of trading, Anita
:06:34. > :06:36.can wait no longer for a recovery that hasn't happened yet.
:06:36. > :06:41.Within the last hour, I've been speaking to Nick Boles, the
:06:41. > :06:51.Conservative MP for Grantham. I started by asking him why we're not
:06:51. > :06:51.
:06:51. > :06:56.seeing an improvement in the economy. The trouble is they're not
:06:56. > :06:59.any quick fixes on easy answers. We have this huge debt burden. Not
:06:59. > :07:03.just the government debt but also personal and business debt which we
:07:03. > :07:07.built up over a long period of time. What we're doing as a country is
:07:07. > :07:11.trying to work it off. Every family has tried to do it and the
:07:11. > :07:15.Government is doing it and growth will suffer until we have got
:07:15. > :07:20.through a good amount of that. have a 17 year high for
:07:20. > :07:27.unemployment. On the brink now of another recession. How much longer
:07:27. > :07:31.is this going to go on for? Can you put a table at? Anyone who tries to
:07:31. > :07:36.predict that kind of thing it is probably a full unless there are
:07:36. > :07:41.much better economist than I am. I think the first thing to say it is
:07:41. > :07:44.that I hope we're not going, and they don't believe there is any
:07:44. > :07:49.reason yet to think, that we're going into a recession along the
:07:49. > :07:56.lines of a couple of years ago. Negative growth is very small.
:07:56. > :07:59.Those figures are often adjusted. I think the prediction for the
:07:59. > :08:02.officer budget responsibility was for two quarters of very slightly
:08:02. > :08:06.negative growth. I do not want people to be frightened into
:08:06. > :08:11.thinking we're going into a serious recession. If the eurozone
:08:11. > :08:15.collapses, all bets are off. What we're doing his bumbling along at
:08:15. > :08:20.the bottom are not getting any left, like an aeroplane that cannot take
:08:20. > :08:24.off. What we need to do is try to get off the ground. As I said,
:08:24. > :08:28.getting our debts down makes that harder. You do need to get off the
:08:28. > :08:33.ground because you are the government. Can you understand the
:08:33. > :08:37.sheer frustration of people? Frustration and fear for the future
:08:37. > :08:43.and for their families. How to cope with the bills coming in and will
:08:43. > :08:48.they be in a job and a couple of years? I understand all of it. We
:08:48. > :08:52.take total responsibility but we really believe it when we say to
:08:52. > :08:56.people that it would be a disaster to try to change course. Almost the
:08:56. > :09:01.only thing we have on our side right now is that we have some of
:09:01. > :09:04.the lowest interest rates in the world. Anybody who has a mortgage
:09:04. > :09:08.or a bank loan or any business with an overdraft, they know what it
:09:08. > :09:14.would do to them and how much worse it would be if there was interest
:09:14. > :09:18.rates went up. The Government must get to it plans to cut public
:09:18. > :09:23.spending in get borrowing down. Then, the economy will have the
:09:23. > :09:26.room to grow. If we change course now, we will have a worse situation
:09:26. > :09:34.and will have thrown away of the good work we have done over the
:09:34. > :09:38.last couple of years. Our contact details coming up in a
:09:38. > :09:40.moment. The Government says cutting tolls on the bridge will provide a
:09:40. > :09:45.huge boost to the economy of East Yorkshire and Lincolnshire. Our
:09:45. > :09:55.Political Editor Tim Iredale is at the Humber Bridge tonight. Are we
:09:55. > :09:56.
:09:56. > :09:59.any nearer to that happening? think today's economic news will
:09:59. > :10:04.have increased the pressure on local politicians to sort out this
:10:04. > :10:08.a rock -- long-running saga. A few weeks ago, I stood on a Humber
:10:08. > :10:12.Bridge with the Chancellor, George Osborne, as he announced that the
:10:12. > :10:15.bridge would be at the centre of the government's plans to boost the
:10:16. > :10:20.economy of northern Lincolnshire and East Yorkshire. This will be
:10:20. > :10:25.done by the Government reducing the outstanding debt on the bridge and
:10:25. > :10:30.with Paul has been reduced by half to �1.58 each way for cars. This
:10:30. > :10:34.has not happened yet, largely because the four local authorities
:10:34. > :10:38.and the Humber have not been able to agree what to do with the
:10:38. > :10:45.remaining debt. North-East Lincolnshire Council is concerned
:10:45. > :10:49.about divvying that up for ways. Tonight, that North had spoken to
:10:49. > :10:56.Alan Johnson, local MP here and former cabinet minister, and he
:10:56. > :11:00.says it is essential this is sorted sooner rather than later.
:11:00. > :11:05.One of the issues about the economy is removing barriers to growth in
:11:05. > :11:10.Hull. Brittle's across the Humber Bridge are one of those barriers.
:11:10. > :11:13.The government and in essence offering us �115 million. For local
:11:13. > :11:16.authorities to turn their back on that by failing to reach agreement
:11:16. > :11:24.across the Humber would be catastrophic. I do not think that
:11:24. > :11:29.will happen. We understand Alan Johnson, other local MPs and other
:11:29. > :11:34.council leaders will attend a meeting in Hull on Friday to try to
:11:34. > :11:38.finally find a solution to the debt issue on the Humber Bridge. I think
:11:38. > :11:42.it is the political equivalent of heads being banged together. Thank
:11:42. > :11:45.you. We'd love to hear your thoughts on this story. What's the
:11:45. > :11:55.key to future success in East Yorkshire and Lincolnshire and how
:11:55. > :12:05.
:12:05. > :12:10.has the economic downturn affected Police investigating the
:12:10. > :12:13.disappearance of Hull woman Diann Conboy have found a body. The 47-
:12:13. > :12:17.year-old went missing from her home in Orchard Park more than a month
:12:17. > :12:20.ago. Searches have been taking place since then. The body which
:12:20. > :12:24.was found in the Welwyn Park Avenue area of the city has yet to be
:12:24. > :12:28.formally identified. An underwater search team has been
:12:28. > :12:31.called to Boston after a body was found in a river. The discovery was
:12:31. > :12:40.made this lunchtime in the Wyberton West Road and Linley Drive area of
:12:40. > :12:41.the Town. An investigation is now person died.
:12:41. > :12:45.Farmers in Lincolnshire have been warned they could be targeted by
:12:45. > :12:48.criminal gangs looking to steal metal and equipment. There's been a
:12:48. > :12:54.big increase in farm thefts across our area according to the insurance
:12:54. > :13:03.company NFU Mutual. As well as fuel and livestock, thieves are
:13:03. > :13:08.targeting machinery for its scrap metal and selling it abroad. Their
:13:08. > :13:15.primary targets seem to be copper and lead. There is a scrap value to
:13:15. > :13:17.any sort of machine and any machine not secured, is gone. We're also
:13:17. > :13:22.seeing international gangs targeting tractors and we know that
:13:22. > :13:27.most of the big tractors that have been stolen in the rear are going
:13:27. > :13:32.abroad, often to Eastern Europe and then distributed throughout the
:13:32. > :13:42.world. That is a big business, accounting for maybe �20 billion
:13:42. > :13:43.
:13:43. > :13:47.From Tue for watching. Still ahead, the NHS defence
:13:47. > :13:57.sending senior officials on a trip to Florida, costing thousands.
:13:57. > :14:02.
:14:02. > :14:12.Celebrating together, the first of The picture is of sunset at
:14:12. > :14:20.
:14:20. > :14:27.Driffield. Very nice! Thank you for that comment! I have forgotten what
:14:27. > :14:33.I was going to say! Tonight, quite a bit of rain to
:14:33. > :14:40.come from the West. It clears, and much of tomorrow will be bright,
:14:40. > :14:45.with sunshine. A few scattered showers. The weather front will
:14:45. > :14:54.print shop bursts of rain after midnight, then we are back in the
:14:54. > :15:01.clearest off for Thursday and Friday. -- be clearer stuff. A lot
:15:01. > :15:08.of uncertainty for the Further Outlook. It is mild out there. A
:15:08. > :15:12.lot of cloud. The wind will pick up ahead of the weather front. After
:15:13. > :15:22.midnight, the rain will come from the West. If you have got an early
:15:23. > :15:34.
:15:34. > :15:39.Cnut for the morning, it will be A wet start, but the rain should be
:15:39. > :15:47.clear off the coast from nine attempts. Then, it is brighter,
:15:47. > :15:53.with sunshine. Plenty of sunshine in between the showers. The strong
:15:53. > :16:01.wind will ease. Like to win tomorrow. The temperatures are
:16:01. > :16:06.close to the long-term average. Be very similar forecast for Friday.
:16:06. > :16:16.Sunny spells and scattered showers. Then, a battle looms for the
:16:16. > :16:22.weekend. It will get a bit colder. Many people have pointed out that
:16:22. > :16:28.yesterday they suggested there should be a statue of us in Hull!
:16:28. > :16:38.It would be so expensive. It would have to be press, to match your
:16:38. > :16:39.
:16:39. > :16:43.skin tone! -- it would have to be brass! I will just be a small one!
:16:43. > :16:47.The NHS Trust has defended a decision to send three of its
:16:47. > :16:54.managers, including the chief executive, to the United States,
:16:54. > :17:01.for a three-day conference. The event took place last week at this
:17:01. > :17:05.hotel on Florida's Delray Beach. The trust have said that the
:17:05. > :17:15.conference covered areas which would benefit -- which will benefit
:17:15. > :17:25.
:17:25. > :17:31.The trust has to make savings of �95 million over the next three
:17:31. > :17:35.years. The news of the trip drew a mixed response in Hull today.
:17:36. > :17:44.With the technology we have got at the moment, I do not understand why
:17:44. > :17:49.a trip to Florida has any need. is difficult for nurses to find
:17:50. > :17:54.work. It is a waste of money. depends what the conference was. It
:17:54. > :18:03.could have been of some use. There is no need to make these trips any
:18:03. > :18:07.more expensive than they have do. Earlier, I spoke to Emma Boon from
:18:07. > :18:13.the Taxpayers' Alliance. She says it is hard to justify the trip when
:18:13. > :18:17.the NHS is trying to save money. Leadership is important, training
:18:17. > :18:21.is important, we want managers to know what they are to win, but it
:18:21. > :18:25.is worrying that tax payers have picked up the bill for a trip to
:18:25. > :18:29.the United States, especially at a time when costs need to be kept
:18:29. > :18:34.under control. The trust has -- trust should have considered if
:18:34. > :18:38.this was the best possible value. They are trying to learn how to
:18:38. > :18:42.improve the care they provide to patients in East Yorkshire. If it
:18:42. > :18:45.does that, you would be happy? have got to be sensitive to the
:18:45. > :18:49.fact that there is pressure on their budgets, and perhaps they
:18:49. > :18:53.could have been an alternative to the training in the UK, perhaps
:18:53. > :19:01.they did not need to send all three marriages. The tax payers will not
:19:01. > :19:05.look kindly on this. Given that the trust has got to make savings of
:19:05. > :19:10.�95 million over the next three years, �5,500 is a drop in the
:19:10. > :19:17.ocean. It is not about the sum of money. We could say that about lots
:19:17. > :19:22.of different things, and it adds up to millions. Billions, in fact. We
:19:22. > :19:26.have got to view the principle. Did it have to take place in the state?
:19:26. > :19:32.Did they have to send so many people over? Could they have done
:19:32. > :19:37.at some other way? Could they have reduced the cost? Tax payers will
:19:37. > :19:40.be asking the questions. The chief executive is reported to have said,
:19:40. > :19:45.if you want a world class service, you have to involve world-class
:19:45. > :19:51.people. If you start going down that road, you could justify all
:19:51. > :19:55.sorts of costs. Tax payers expect those sorts of costs to be kept
:19:55. > :19:59.under control, and there are questions to be asked about whether
:19:59. > :20:02.or not tax payers should have footed the bill, given that it was
:20:02. > :20:07.in the United States and several members of staff went out. They
:20:07. > :20:15.were not fulfilling their duties while they were away. That
:20:15. > :20:19.represents a cost as well. You might want to comment on the
:20:19. > :20:29.story. We look forward to hearing from you. Should the trust be
:20:29. > :20:36.
:20:36. > :20:39.spending the money on training over Start the text with the word
:20:39. > :20:42.McNaught. The father of attendance and is
:20:42. > :20:50.calling for a change in the law after being refused compensation
:20:50. > :20:52.following his son's murder. The body was found in waterways across
:20:52. > :20:57.northern Lincolnshire. His father replied to the Criminal injuries
:20:57. > :21:02.compensation Authority, but they have turned him down, citing his
:21:02. > :21:06.previous criminal convictions as one of the reasons for the refusal.
:21:06. > :21:09.A 10 million pound investment combined with the recent return of
:21:09. > :21:14.student midwives means that the Pilgrim Hospital in Boston is
:21:14. > :21:19.facing a much brighter future, according to health officials. Last
:21:19. > :21:22.year, the Care Quality Commission issued a series of reports
:21:22. > :21:29.criticising standards at the hospital, but managers say many
:21:29. > :21:34.improvements have been made. More money is being spent here than
:21:34. > :21:40.in the last three years put together. More than �4 million on a
:21:40. > :21:46.new intensive care unit. 2.5 million on the endoscopy department.
:21:46. > :21:50.1.2 million on a brand new MRI scanner. This means that many
:21:50. > :21:56.patients will not now have to travel great distances for their
:21:56. > :22:04.MRI scans. For the cancer imaging, we could not do this here. The
:22:04. > :22:09.patient had to travel to Nottingham, Grantham, so they were doing some
:22:09. > :22:15.work, but some of them had to go to Nottingham. Now, we can do it in
:22:15. > :22:21.Boston. The new investment could not come at a better time. Boston
:22:21. > :22:26.has had a poor run of things. It is nice they are trying to get it back
:22:26. > :22:35.to normal. If the surroundings are nice, you feel nice cover you feel
:22:35. > :22:39.better about it. You feel as though you are being well looked after.
:22:39. > :22:43.2011 was a torrid year for the hospital, with a series of critical
:22:43. > :22:47.reports by the Care Quality Commission, a police investigation
:22:47. > :22:51.into a member of staff and the nursing and midwifery Council's
:22:51. > :22:57.decision to withdraw students. But the new improvements are now
:22:57. > :23:01.helping boost morale. culmination of all of the work
:23:01. > :23:05.coming together has been a huge morale boost. It has come at a
:23:06. > :23:11.great time, on the back of improving quality and results. It
:23:11. > :23:15.is great news. Additional facilities in the end Oscar de
:23:15. > :23:19.department means more patients will be seen more quickly. It will allow
:23:19. > :23:24.us to have 3000 more procedures a year, and it will shorten and
:23:24. > :23:27.waiting times to two weeks. Hospital managers say they hope the
:23:27. > :23:31.package of improvements will signal a bright new future for the
:23:31. > :23:41.hospital. They said they are confident the next report from the
:23:41. > :23:46.Care Quality Commission will signal how much progress has been made.
:23:46. > :23:50.Three of our football clubs played last night. In League One,
:23:50. > :23:57.Scunthorpe United went behind in the first minute, and it lost 3-1,
:23:57. > :24:05.to Sheffield Wednesday. Grimsby Town's winning run came to an end
:24:05. > :24:11.when they conceded a late equaliser. Lincoln City are five points clear
:24:11. > :24:16.of the relegation zone. When most fathers go to a
:24:16. > :24:21.university graduation ceremony, it is to watch their child get their
:24:21. > :24:27.degree. Today, one father from Lincolnshire broke the mould by
:24:27. > :24:30.joining his daughter to actually graduate himself. The university
:24:30. > :24:37.thinks it is the first time a father and child have ever
:24:37. > :24:43.graduated together. Graduation is a proud day for any
:24:43. > :24:49.student, but for two from this University, today was extra-special.
:24:49. > :24:55.Not only was Leah Warriner-Wood collecting her master's degree, but
:24:55. > :24:59.her father, Derek Warriner, was as well. We have both look forward to
:24:59. > :25:05.it, we were surprised we would be graduating together. It has been
:25:05. > :25:10.the most amazing, enjoyable day. When I went up myself, I was proud,
:25:10. > :25:16.and I was proud of my father. fathers come to see their children!
:25:16. > :25:22.Yes! I have got to see mine, from a different perspective! She
:25:22. > :25:28.graduated a few minutes before I did. It was wonderful. I am full of
:25:28. > :25:36.pride. It is a really wonderful day. As well as their day jobs, they
:25:36. > :25:38.have been studying hard at their homes in North Hykeham. They took
:25:38. > :25:43.conservation and theatre and consciousness. For two generations
:25:43. > :25:47.to graduate on the same afternoon, it is a first for the University of
:25:47. > :25:51.Lincoln. We normally see students graduating, and it is a wonderful
:25:51. > :25:55.day for them, and for their parents, who have shepherded them through
:25:55. > :25:59.their academic careers, but when the parent and the daughter
:25:59. > :26:06.graduate at the same time, it is a wonderful experience. Today may not
:26:06. > :26:16.be the last time that they graduate together. They are now thinking of
:26:16. > :26:17.
:26:17. > :26:21.If you have got a story you think we should know about, senders and
:26:21. > :26:26.e-mail. The main headlines.
:26:26. > :26:29.The economy in reverse, the UK's output shrank at the end of last
:26:29. > :26:32.year. There will be a meeting of Labour
:26:32. > :26:35.politicians to discuss the issue stopping a deal over the Humber
:26:36. > :26:40.Bridge debt. The weather for tomorrow, the rain
:26:40. > :26:49.clears, then it is much brighter, with sunny spells and a few
:26:49. > :26:52.scattered showers. Responses coming in on the story
:26:52. > :27:00.from the Hull and East Yorkshire NHS Trust about the officials on
:27:00. > :27:04.the trip. One person says, how dare they? It is criminal, considering
:27:04. > :27:09.the way they are cutting essential services are. One person says, it
:27:09. > :27:14.is a disgrace that the NHS have used thousands in sending senior
:27:14. > :27:17.officials to America for a jolly. The money should have been used for
:27:17. > :27:22.the vulnerable patients. One person says, it is outrageous they can
:27:22. > :27:32.waste money on trips to America when patients cannot get cancer
:27:32. > :27:32.
:27:32. > :27:37.treatment. How can we take them seriously? One person says, can we