31/07/2013 Look North (North East and Cumbria)

programme tonight. The beautiful North. An apology from the Tory peer

who said the North East would be a good place for shale gas fracking,

because it's desolate and uninhabited. Also tonight, fury of a

mother after the exclusion order she said protected her from the man who

killed her son, is lifted. He might as well, and introduce himself and

say, I am the person who killed your son. The longest closure in the

Metro's history means buses only to the airport for travellers next

month. And a high tech solution to a common dilemma for breast-feeding

mums. In sport, why the Aussies just can't

get enough of the North East. And Papiss Cisse wearing that logo. He

lost it. The criticism mounted for Lord Howell of Guildford today. As

we told you on last night's Look North, his comments in the House of

Lords - that quote: parts of the North-East are "uninhabited" and

"desolate" have caused a storm. He was arguing that our region would be

a better place for fracking operations - that's drilling and

fracturing underground shale for gas and oil. But today MPs, tourism

leaders and just about everybody with access to social media sites

have been tearing him to shreds. Lord Howell is a former Government

Minister who just happens to be the father-in-law of the Chancellor,

George Osborne, so he hasn't done the government any favours, either.

Here's our Chief Reporter Chris Stewart on how to lose your friends

and uninhabited and desolate areas in parts of the north-east where

there is plenty of room for fracturing. -- tracking. Well away

from anybody's residents. What we don't know is how well Lord Howell

knows the north-east. What we do know is as a government minister 30

years ago, you came here at least twice stop the reaction today.

Terrible. He's never been here so he doesn't know what he's missing.

is very beautiful here. I was very annoyed. I didn't like the way it

was said. It is one of the most beautiful parts of the country with

huge potential. There we have had it before. Remember when and art critic

arts about -- asked about Gateshead? Bomb it and then you will change it.

So that is what they think of us. Let's consider their region for a

moment. The Southeast consistent tidy of muggers, murderers wideboys,

Barrow boys and dodgy dealers who would sell their own granny for a

pound. I should know, I have been there at least twice. But just in

case I'm wrong, I will apologise like Lord Howell and everything will

be all right again. All the statement will be wrecked as for the

rubbish it is. The latest on the story is that Lord Howell has

accepted an invitation from the Labour MP Ian Avery to visit us.

Well, the criticism has been raining down on Lord Howell from all sides.

So, perhaps, not surprisingly, he's apologised. Earlier I spoke to North

East-born Kevin McGuire, Associate Editor of the staunchly Labour Daily

Mirror. I asked him if in his opinion an apology would do. No, it

is not enough. When he first spoke and called the north-east desolate,

he was saying what he and a lot of Home Counties Tories think will stop

some of them say it out of ignorance, some of the matters

prejudice. They'll treat the north-east as colonial, far-away

places. He might have put this in a strange way, but some people might

say, maybe he has a point, we do need jobs. As long as we can keep

some of the revenue from this cracking then there could be an

opportunity. -- fracking. I find it a bit rich coming from Lord Howell

when he is a member of Lady Thatcher's government. It is a bit

rich. If you doesn't realise the north-east is beautiful, whether it

is down in Cleveland, the National Park, the gorgeous Georgian streets

of Newcastle, years from another world anyway and he is clearly

ignorant or prejudiced about the north-east. Do you think is in touch

with the country? He is very well connected because he is George

Osborne's father-in-law. But I think he is from another planet. Here's

one said to have remarked that George Osborne wasn't posh because

he lived in Notting Hill. Well, Northumberland may have an alien

visitors soon because he has accepted an invitation to have a bit

of holiday here. You may need a bodyguard, someone to protect him.

But do we really want people like him in the north-east? I suspect we

don't. He should stay in his wake posh house in southeastern England

She's described it as the final insult. Ten years ago Barbara

Dunne's son, Robert, was stabbed to death in Middlesbrough by a man

armed with a Samurai sword. His killer has now been released. But an

exclusion order which prevented him going anywhere near the Dunne family

has been lifted. Barbara has described the decision as sickening

and disrespectful - as Stuart Whincup reports. When her son's

killer was released from prison - Barbara Dunne says there was one

rule. He was excluded from coming anywhere near her family. But now

that order's been lifted. He might as well, and introduce himself and

say, I'm the person who in that she might as well introduce himself and

say I'm the person who killed your son. Why is he asking permission to

come into the exclusions and? The family of the man he killed lived

here. Jason Kelly was jailed in 2003 after he stabbed Robert Dunne to

death in a Middlesbrough street with a Samurai sword. For years Barbara

campaigned for tougher laws on knife crime and she took her fight to

Downing Street. But seven years on she feels she's been let down - by

the authorities. This area close to the family home was previously in

the exclusion zone. Every application is considered very

carefully before any decision is made and then discussed with the

victim or their family. If there are any changes, they come with very

strict rules. But such reassurances mean little to the family. I feel

like shouting out and saying, is there anybody out there who can

help? I feel very bitter about it. I feel like I have been treated like

the offender. Ever since her son's death Barbara says she's been failed

by the people who are supposed to be supporting her.

The Home Office has issued new guidance to police forces that

people with a history of domestic violence should NOT be allowed to

own a firearm or shotgun. It follows a campaign by the family of three

women shot dead by Michael Atherton in Horden, County Durham on New

Year's Day 2012. He killed his partner Susan McGoldrick, her sister

Alison Turnbull and Ms Turnbull's daughter Tanya with a shotgun that

police had returned to him despite his history of violence towards Ms

McGoldrick. Alison's Sun says he hopes police forces will use the

guideline. It is just a small step in the right direction. One of my

biggest worries is that these guidelines are not mandatory. Police

do not have to abide by them and will police forces begin to abide by

them? Family and friends of the two young girls who drowned in the River

Wear at Washington have come together this afternoon for a

fundraising walk along the banks of the river where the two teenagers

died. 15-year-old Tonibeth Purvis and 14-year-old Chloe Fowler got

into difficulties during last week's hot weather. Today's walk was to

help raise money for their families. Jim Knight reports. They began

gathering on the river bank - close to where Tonibeth and Chloe first

went into the water. I did a banner for her. Memories of Chloe...

since the rescue teams found the girls bodies last Tuesday night,

family, and hundreds of young friends and neighbours have been

trying to come to terms with what's happened. They believe the community

coming together so strongly like this can only help. We have left the

family to grieve in peace. The community has come together to do

all the rest. Fatfield bridge has now become a shrine to Tonibeth and

Chloe. The railings now draped with a huge array of flowers and soft

toys When the walk finally got under way, it was Chloe's family who led

the procession out of Fatfield as they headed-off towards Chloe's home

in Shiney Row. The family is welcome to every single penny we make and

they can do what they want with the rest of it. It was Chloe's family

who led the procession as they headed towards Chloe's home. Of

course, it is very hard to tell whether events like this really do

help, but from speaking to people here and the oppression I have got,

you get a sense they are just glad to be doing something positive in

what has been a really difficult stage of a long term modernisation

of the Tyne and Wear Metro system. But this time, the section in

question is the busiest on the network. From this Sunday, the line

between Haymarket and Newcastle Airport, will be shut for almost

four weeks - as will the line to Four Lane Ends. It'll be the longest

closure in the Metro's history. Gerry Jackson is at the Metro's

Newcastle Airport terminus now. is one of the places where people

who use the Metro will have to make alternative arrangements. Over the

27 days, hundreds of extra buses will be running along those routes.

It is not the first time it has happened during this big

modernisation and will not be the last. It is the biggest test of how

they compensate for a line being closed. A building site, men in

suits. And the media turning up. An ominous combination for any

commuter. But here, those bosses think they're getting pretty good at

it. They're spending nearly �400 million in 11 years, refurbishing

the Metro from top to bottom. This is year four. But it's the biggest

challenge yet. Not only is it large but it is right at the heart of the

Metro system so it impacts on the most number of trains and

passengers. We will be working seven days a week, 24 hours a day and we

will be spending almost half �1 million a day. So, the contractors

have been dotting themselves around the network over these years and

right now there are 20,000 tonnes of stone ballast, 7,000 concrete

sleepers and it is also so they can relay about four miles of track.

There are 1960s British rail vintage. -- they are. The buses will

go between the city centre, the airport and the four Lane ends. But

apparently it is the quietest time of year to do it. This will

safeguard the Metro for another generation. Once it is done, it will

last another 50 years so we can look back and another generation can reap

the benefits. 50,000 people use the station alone in an average month.

The Haymarket and Regent Centre are major interchanges so a lot will

depend on whether these replacement buses are sufficient to remove all

these people around. Look out the numbers 901 and 900. There will also

be an express shuttle leaving people between Central Station and here,

only stopping at Saint James 's. There is information about us times

in this leaflet dotted around the station and there is the website.

Thanks Gerry. Still to come in tonight's Look North Jeff's here

with the sport news. And why this popular cafe is being forced to

close after eighty five years of serving up tea and scones. And rain

clouds gathering across the region tonight. When will the sun return?

Breast-feeding is the most natural thing in the world - but many new

mums find doing it in public a very daunting experience. Well, now a new

mobile phone app's been developed by computer scientists at Newcastle

University to try to help mothers feel more comfortable.

Breast-feeding mums can use their smartphones to share their

experiences and rate breastfeeding-friendly places.

Stephanie Cleasby reports. Breast-feeding mums are more than

welcome at this cafe in the Heaton area of Newcastle. But that's not

always the case in other public places. We went to a well-known

chain of restaurants and I asked if I could be put somewhere not in the

middle of the restaurant, and they said, you can use the disabled

toilet feed him. It was not very nice. The benefits of breast-feeding

for both mother and infant are well documented. Now mothers will always

know the most breastfeeding-friendly places in town. This free

Feed-Finder app has been developed by Newcastle University with the

help of 30 new mums. The app can be used with one hand there is is user

friendly for breast-feeding mums. allows them to rate cafes, shops and

other public places on their attitude to breast-feeding. I think

it has a real place the helping mothers starting breast-feeding when

they are lacking confidence. People need to remember you can breast-feed

anywhere. Anything that makes you feel more reassured and that you are

worrying welcome would be great. -- and that you are really welcome.

People are frightened about the reaction they will get an this app

is like having a breast-feeding friend in your pocket. It does just

that job of saying, this is an OK place, you won't get a bad reaction.

The app is about reassuring women that it is OK to breast-feed in

public and that many women have many positive experiences of

breast-feeding in public. Hopefully, the Mormon women that do it, the

more people will see it is completely normal option -- the more

women. It's hoped the app will help mothers to enjoy breast-feeding and

continue breast-feeding for longer. A cafe which has been serving teas

and coffees beside Derwent Water in Cumbria for eighty-five years is to

close. The same family has run the lakeside Tea Gardens in Keswick for

25 of those years but their lease hasn't been renewed. That's because

the next-door Theatre by the Lake wants to open a new restaurant on

the site which it says is vital for the future of the venue. A cafe

speciality - along with the views and the sunshine. People have been

dining al fresco at the Lakeside Tea Gardens in Keswick for around 85

years. Run by the same family for the past twenty five, they'll be

shutting the doors for the last time at the end of the autumn. But not by

choice. We got a letter from solicitors to say on the 31st of

October, pack your stop up and get out. -- pack your stuff. The Theatre

by the Lake is the landlord and neighbour. But it hasn't renewed

their lease. It plans to redevelop this prime location into a

restaurant. Of course I understand that the current tenants are

concerned about the future, but we are the landlord and therefore we

are simply exercising the right that we have. As far as the theatre is

concerned, it will absolutely underpin our future. We are in hard

times so there is every pressure on us to come -- to increase our earned

income. Regulars are saddened.The theatre has got to make a living, as

well, but they have got a cafe. This is just really special. We macro we

love coming here. We feel so sad that it is not going to be the same.

We have come for years without children and the cafe is nothing

like this in the theatre. There's an irony in this ending for the cafe

owners. We had a really good night here with Dame Judi Dench and her

husband and we helped raise money for the new building. I feel so

sad, what they have done to us. Steve and Dina say theyhope to find

another place to open a cafe but it's easy to see why they'll miss

this beautiful, historic and lucrative location. Now time for the

sport. He is back? Yes. Papiss Cisse marked his return to action in a

Newcastle shirt in style last night scoring the first goal in United's

2-0 victory over Scottish League Cup winners St Mirren. It was his first

game since finally agreeing to wear the name of club sponsors Wonga.

Dawn Thewlis reports. It was a sight many fans and perhaps Papiss Cisse

himself never thought they'd see. The Senegalese striker wearing a

Newcastle shirt bearing the name of payday loan company Wonga. But he

seemed relaxed as he took to the pitch at St Mirren Park last night.

The Muslim player had refused to wear the kit on religious grounds

and was excluded from the clubs pre season training camp in Portugal and

left to train alone at home before the parties came to an agreement

last week and Cisse decided to join the rest of his muslim team-mates in

wearing the Wonga shirt. The controversy certainly didn't seem to

have affected him on the pitch and his curling shot put Newcastle ahead

after 19 minutes the striker delighted to be back doing what he

does best - and he obviously wasn't the only one! Eight minutes later

they doubled their lead - Matthieu Debuchy scoring his first goal for

the club despite appeals for offside. Dan Gosling came close a

couple of times another player to have come back into the fold after

his move to Crystal Palace broke down. At least manager Alan Pardew

has some reasons to be cheerful in a summer which has so far failed to

produce any new signings. Now it's hard to believe but the new football

season kicks off this weekend. Many of our teams have seen quite a few

changes over the close season with transfers and new managers. But for

League Two York City it's experience that counts. Info all, goals make

you very popular. But it is not enough the cult status. For that,

you need longevity. Richard Criswell started his career at York aged 19.

Now, aged 36 and by several bigger clubs, he is back again. He made his

first unexpected return at the end of last season. Coming here and

playing a part, it gave me a real buzz for playing regularly again. I

didn't play much last year the Sheffield United. I wanted to get

that feeling back. But in appearance terms, is upstaged by Daniel

Parslow. Eight consecutive season and 300 appearances including twice

a winner at Wembley. I love playing football here. If you had told me

when I was 20 that I would still be here now, I would think you were

lying. It has flown by. I've got an affiliation with the club now, I've

been here so long as I really enjoy my football here. And tomorrow we'll

preview the season for our other League Two side Hartlepool Utd. Now

Australian cricket fans will soon be converging on the region ahead of

the Fourth Ashes Test match at Chester-le-Street - the biggest

sporting occasion in our patch for a generation. So a timely announcement

today that the Aussies' athletics squad will base themselves on

Tyneside for a training camp in the run-up to next summer's Commonwealth

Games in Glasgow. Yours truly and have a long-standing relationship

here. They competed in the city games some time ago and used

Gateshead is holding camp for the 2012 games in Delhi. We believe we

should have more training and athletics events here and we're

determined we're going to get them. It will help us having the Israeli

team training with us. A bit of a cricket connection? Yes, Brandon

Stark is a bit of a start on the high jump. And his other. And Jemma

Lowe reached the final in the butterfly. But in the last few

minutes she has just failed to reach the final. Now, if it is not raining

where you are, it is on his way? Yes, for most of us across the

region overnight, first of all, a tomorrow. Warm and humid for most

places through the afternoon and evening. Overnight, wet across the

region. That rain heavy for a time over the Cumbrian coast and fells.

By the early hours of the morning, it has started to clear. It is a

mild night, muddy even. -- muggy. Not far below the daytime maximum

average temperature of the summertime in this part of the

world. It really humid, sticky feel. First thing tomorrow morning, more

heavy rainfall to come for a time. Sunshine breaks out again for much

of the region by lunchtime and into the mid-afternoon. It is warm, 26

Celsius. As we tour northwards, most of the rain has cleared. A warm

afternoon and evening to come with southerly breezes drawing in that

mild air. Still cloudy for much of Cumbria, still raining on the coast

at tea-time but it won't be by the later part of the evening. Over the

next couple of days, things stay very pleasant indeed. Still warm,

possibly still feeling a little bit humid and muggy across much of the

region on Friday. A fresher feel by the start of the weekend. One or two

showers on Saturday and the temperature is probably no more than

the low 20s in degrees Celsius. A lot more sunshine than we are

expecting through the early part of tomorrow. It cooler feel on