Nigel Adams has been nominated for a peerage as part of Boris Johnson’s resignation honours, according to media reports.

The Selby and Ainsty MP, which includes southern parts of Harrogate, is among 20 people set to be included on the former Prime Minister’s peer list, reports The Times.

Nadine Dorries, former Culture Secretary, Alister Jack, Scotland Secretary, and Alok Sharma the outgoing Cop26 president are also set to be nominated to be elevated to the House of Lords.

Conservative Tees Valley Mayor, Ben Houchen, is also reported to be on the list.

Adams, who was a cabinet minister without portfolio in Johnson’s government, has already announced he will stand down at the next general election.

Read more:

• Harrogate district MP Nigel Adams to step down at next election
• Nigel Adams MP’s £33,000 donation from former Russian businessman back in spotlight

He was regarded as a key ally of the former Prime Minister.

Mr Adams was first elected in 2010 and has defended the seat in three subsequent elections.

He currently holds the Selby and Ainsty seat with a majority of 20,137.

The Harrogate and Knaresborough constituency would be reduced in size, under revised plans published today by the Boundary Commission for England.

The commission first published proposals for a shake-up of Harrogate and Knaresborough in June 2021, which included moving Boroughbridge to another seat and shrinking the size of the constituency.

Under today’s revised proposals, the electorate would stand at 75,800. Latest Parliament figures show the current boundary has an electorate of 77,605.

The seat is currently held by the Conservative Andrew Jones.

The latest changes would see Claro ward and areas such as Burton Leonard reintroduced to the constituency from the initial proposals.

However, Boroughbridge would still remain in a newly created seat.

Read more:

• Harrogate and Knaresborough could be shrunk, under parliamentary boundary shake-up
• Harrogate Conservatives breached data rules relating to Lib Dem rival

The commission will now undertake another round of public consultation until December 5 before making recommendations to government.

It will publish a final report on boundary changes in 2023. 

Under the current proposals, the number of constituencies in Yorkshire and Humber would remain at 54.

Conservative Nigel Adams’ seat of Selby and Ainsty, which includes the south of Harrogate, would be scrapped.

The Wetherby and Easingwold seat.

Instead, Selby would have its own seat and the north of the district would fall under a new constituency called Wetherby and Easingwold, which would take in areas including Wetherby, Bishop Monkton and Boroughbridge.

The Skipton and Ripon constituency, which is currently represented by Conservative Julian Smith, would include Ripley, which is currently part of Harrogate and Knaresborough.

Tim Bowden, secretary to the Boundary Commission for England, said:

“Today we are announcing the publication of our revised proposals. Last year we published our initial proposals for new constituency boundaries – our first go at what the map should look like. We are delighted with the huge number of comments from members of the public on our initial proposals, many which included valuable evidence about local communities.

“Today’s publication is the culmination of months of analysis and we have revised nearly half of our initial proposals based on what people have told us. We now believe we are close to the best map of constituencies that can be achieved under the rules we are working to.

“However, we still want people to tell us what they think of this latest map before we submit our final recommendations to Parliament next year. This is our final consultation and I encourage you to participate in the 2023 Boundary Review.”

As part of the review, the number of constituencies in England will increase from 533 to 543.

You can comment on the proposals at the Boundary Commission website here.

County council bosses have unveiled plans for a new brand ahead of the creation of North Yorkshire Council.

The authority will come into force on April 1, 2023, when North Yorkshire County Council, Harrogate Borough Council and the other six districts will be abolished.

In a report due before the authority’s executive tomorrow, officials will recommend pressing ahead with proposals to implement a rebrand at a cost of £393,969.

It would see the the new brand included on main access points, libraries, registrar offices, crematoriums, adult social care venues and the county records office.

Much of the cost includes implementing the logo on staff lanyards, letterhead, email, certificates, licences, consents, permissions and orders.

How the new brand will look.

In a report, Vanessa Glover, head of communications, said:

“The design of an identity for North Yorkshire Council has been developed entirely using internal experience and expertise from the eight councils involved in local government reorganisation. There have therefore been no external costs incurred.”

She added:

“The new North Yorkshire Council is legally required to adopt an identity. It is not possible to utilise any of the eight council brands currently in place.

“Therefore, this paper suggests a staged and proportionate approach to satisfying those legal requirements, while recommending a relatively low-cost approach to limited symbolic branding.”

Read more:

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• Working group set up to steer future of Harrogate Convention Centre
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The authority will be legally required to include the brand on certain assets as of April 1, 2023.

This includes council tax bills, employee IDs and tariff boards in all council owned or operated car parks.

However, the council intends to keep district authority branding on some assets until they are worn out.

According to the report, this includes cemeteries, bus stops and wheelie bins.

More detail is needed on plans to give Harrogate district parish councils more powers, says a Knaresborough town councillor.

North Yorkshire Council will take charge of all local government in the county on April 1. The seven district councils, including Harrogate Borough Council, and North Yorkshire County Council, will be abolished.

Under a pilot scheme, lower-tier authorities will be offered the chance to manage more local services as part of a “double devolution” approach designed to prevent too much power being centralised in Northallerton.

It could see Ripon City Council, Knaresborough Town Council, Pateley Bridge Town Council and others in North Yorkshire take on more powers over assets and services.

However, Cllr David Goode, a town councillor in Knaresborough, has said the devil will be in the detail on the proposals.

He pointed out that the country faces another round of austerity measures in the coming years, which may impact on what services could be given to lower-tier councils.

He said:

“At this stage, the opportunity is to participate in a number of pilot projects in 2023, but a more substantial programme of discussions on transfers will not start until 2024 and the reality is that the development of opportunities for assets management and service delivery will take many years to evolve.

“What is not discussed in detail at this time is the potential impact of another round of austerity cuts from central government and what impact these may have on the delivery of services by the new North Yorkshire Council.

“A key future role for town and parish councils may be to offer alternative solutions to local residents for potential service solutions that could replace those being withdrawn.

“For such a programme to be successful it will be very important for a town council like Knaresborough’s to truly engage with the community, such that local residents are fully engaged in decision making about the town council developing new and innovative service solutions that could replace disappearing services, that residents value, but may not be part of any transfer deal from North Yorkshire Council.”

Meanwhile, Cllr Andrew Williams, the leader of Ripon City Council, said:

“We very much welcome the move by North Yorkshire County Council’s executive to establish a policy on double devolution to town and parish councils.

“The report that will be considered on Tuesday is exactly what were told it would be, so it is very much full steam ahead and I have high hopes that Ripon will be leading the way on this issue.”

‘Double devolution’

Councils will be able to propose taking on a wide range of assets and services, rather than picking from a list.

However, the county council intends to make it clear that proposals to take on decision-making powers, such as planning or traffic regulation, will not be considered.

It would also not consider “expressions of interest with regard to services and assets that generate a significant net income for the new council”.

Read more:

• ‘Double devolution’ for parish councils, under county council plan
• New North Yorkshire Council launches consultation on funding priorities
• Harrogate district town councils to be invited to take on more powers

Once invited, local councils will have until March 2023 to express an interest in taking on more services.

In a report due before the county council’s executive on November 8, Neil Irving, assistant director of partnerships, said:

“Double devolution is entirely separate from the proposed devolution deal between the government and the local authorities in York and North Yorkshire.

“Double devolution has operated for over 10 years in some other parts of the country, including Cornwall and Wiltshire. 

“There is also significant experience of existing councils in North Yorkshire successfully transferring services and assets to community groups and to town and parish councils.”

Every month the Stray Ferret tries to find out what our local MPs have been up to in their constituencies and in the House of Commons.

In October, Liz Truss resigned as Prime Minister after just 44 days. As a result, another Conservative leadership contest was held with Rishi Sunak beating Penny Mordaunt and Boris Johnson to enter 10 Downing Street.

The government also U-turned on most of its planned tax cuts amid mounting pressure from MPs and financial markets.

We asked our three Conservative MPs, Harrogate & Knaresborough’s Andrew Jones, Skipton and Ripon’s Julian Smith, and Selby and Ainsty’s Nigel Adams if they would like to highlight anything in particular that they have been doing this month, but, as usual, we did not receive a response from any of them.

Here is what we know after analysing their online presence.

Andrew Jones, Harrogate and Knaresborough MP.

In Harrogate and Knaresborough, here is what we found out on Mr Jones:

• Mr Jones backed Rishi Sunak to be leader of the Conservative party. He said the former Chancellor “has the experience, ability and energy to tackle the problems facing our country”.
• On October 19, Mr Jones voted with the government on an opposition motion to introduce a bill to ban fracking in the UK. The vote proved controversial amid allegations of Conservative whips being aggressive with MPs in the voting lobby.
• Mr Jones announced he was launching a “non-political” fact checking service. He said his videos on Instagram will be ‘an occasional series where we just present facts — no politics’. His first video was on investment zones.
• In the second of his Instagram videos on October 21, Mr Jones denied he had voted in favour of fracking following the controversial vote in the House of Commons.
• On October 17, Mr Jones spoke in the House of Commons on investment zones where he said it was “far from the case” that the measure would harm the environment.
• On October 13, Mr Jones called for a debate on designated bathing areas in rivers. It came amid a campaign by Nidd Catchment Anglers Group to create designated areas on the River Nidd.
• On October 24, Mr Jones asked transport minister Kevin Foster MP to consider the role of the private sector in rail reform and to make York the headquarters of Great British Railways.
• On October 27, Mr Jones supported a Dogs Trust campaign to end puppy smuggling.

Read More:

• Consultation launched over £540m North Yorkshire devolution deal
• Levelling up council tax charges over two years is ‘best compromise’

Julian Smith, MP for Ripon and Skipton.

In Skipton and Ripon, here is what we found on Mr Smith:

• Mr Smith also threw his support behind Richmond MP, Rishi Sunak, to become the next Prime Minister.
• On October 11, Mr Smith asked ministers to confirm that they would not “balance the forthcoming tax cuts on the backs of the poorest”.
• Mr Smith was a critic of the government’s plan to cut taxes earlier this month. On October 2, he tweeted that MPs “cannot clap for carers one month and cut tax for millionaires months later”.
• He later welcomed the government’s decision to backtrack on most of its tax cut pledges.
• He voted along with the government on the controversial fracking vote on October 19.
• On October 25, an article on Bloomberg said ‘dark arts specialist’ Mr Smith could be in line for a role in Mr Sunak’s government. As yet, nothing has transpired.

Nigel Adams, MP for Selby and Ainsty which includes rural Harrogate.

In rural south Harrogate, here is what we found on Mr Adams:

• Mr Adams, who is a close ally of Boris Johnson, backed the former Prime Minister in the Conservative leadership contest.
• Mr Adams has kept a low profile since Mr Johnson stepped down as Prime Minister. He made no spoken contributions in the House of Commons in October and only voted on two occasions.
• On October 18, Mr Adams tweeted his support for the Foreign Secretary’s decision to summon the Chinese Chargé d’Affaires to demand an explanation for scenes outside the Chinese Consulate-General in Manchester.

People across the Harrogate district will be asked from today for their views on a historic £540 million devolution deal for North Yorkshire.

In August, county council leaders agreed the long-awaited deal with ministers to devolve more powers, including an elected mayor, to North Yorkshire and York.

The deal will see £18 million year worth of funding devolved to the county over 30 years.

Now, as part of the process to bring more powers to North Yorkshire, the public, businesses and charity organisations will be asked for their thoughts on the deal.

Cllr Carl Les, leader of North Yorkshire County Council, said: 

“We really need the public to come forward and give us their views on what is important to them and how devolution can benefit communities and businesses across York and North Yorkshire.

“The chance to secure these decision-making powers and millions of pounds in funding from the government is set to prove a life-changing opportunity for more than 800,000 people who live and work in York and North Yorkshire.

“Devolution will give local leaders the chance to tackle some of the most pressing issues facing people in York and North Yorkshire – whether that be providing more affordable housing, improving skills and education for better job opportunities, boosting transport infrastructure or tackling the climate crisis.”

Pictured: Cllr Carl Les, leader of North Yorkshire County Council, Greg Clark MP and Cllr Keith Aspden, leader of City of York Council sign the document.

Meanwhile, Helen Simpson, chair of the York and North Yorkshire Local Enterprise Partnership, said: 

“This is a historic moment for York and North Yorkshire and creates the opportunity to deliver long-term investment to support business growth.

“I’d like to invite business leaders across the region to contribute to this consultation.”

Consultation on the deal will run until Friday, December 16. People can have their say at the York and North Yorkshire Devolution website here.

What is in the deal?

As part of the devolution deal, a mayoral combined authority would be formed with a directly-elected mayor by May 2024.

It would mirror similar arrangements in the Tees Valley, where Conservative mayor Ben Houchen oversees the combined authority.

Read More:

• Have devolution fears that Harrogate will be voiceless come true?
• Mayor for North Yorkshire agreed in £540m historic devolution deal
• North Yorkshire’s devolution deal: What’s in it and how will it work?

While the planned North Yorkshire deal brings £540 million worth of investment funding, it is lower than the original £750 million requested by local leaders.

However, more power over skills and transport will be devolved.

It will see whoever is elected mayor and the new combined authority have control over the adult education budget and the ability to draw up its own transport strategy.

Control over bus franchising has also been granted to the county and the power to set up Mayoral Development Corporations, which have the power to buy land for housing or employment to regenerate a defined area.

Much of the deal echoes what was given to Tees Valley in 2015, where mayor Houchen has since exercised his economic development powers to buy Teesside International Airport and Redcar Steelworks.

The Harrogate and Knaresborough Area Constituency Committee met this morning meeting. Congestion on Wetherby Road and Skipton Road, and the otley Road cycle route, were among the topics discussed.

• The 15-person committee, which is controlled by the Liberal Democrats, advises North Yorkshire County Council, which is controlled by the Conservatives.
• Today’s agenda included 20mph speed limits, Harrogate transport improvements, climate change and culture.
• You can watch the meeting here.

Here’s what happened.

12.31pm: ‘Nightmare’ and ‘flawed’: Harrogate’s Otley Road cycle path under further fire

A lively debate about the Otley Road cycle path took place at today’s meeting. You can read a full report of the discussion here.

12.22pm: Culture report criticised

A lengthy report on a cultural framework for North Yorkshire is widely criticised by all parties for having ‘gaps’ and not consulting enough with groups in Harrogate and Knaresborough.

The report cost £20,000 of which £10,000 came from the county council and £10,000 from Arts Council England.

11.50pm: Call for congestion action on Wetherby Road and Skipton Road

Liberal Democrat leader Pat Marsh (pictured left) questions the focus on Leeds Road. She says the busiest roads are Wetherby Road and Skipton Road. She adds: “It’s chronic. How are you going to introduce safe cycling?”

Talking about Wetherby Road, she adds: “The traffic tails back so far it’s unbelievable. It’s there day and night. Why that road is not being looked at, I do not know.”

Cllr Marsh adds there is also potential for a park and ride at the Great Yorkshire Showground just off Wetherby Road.

She then suggests building a new secondary school in the New Park area. “Harrogate’s secondary schools are all on the same side of town.”

Green councillor Arnold Warneken says it took him 40 minutes to drive from the Kestrel roundabout to today’s meeting at the council office at Knapping Mount.

Liberal Democrat Philip Broadbank expresses exasperation at the slow speed at which active travel schemes progress. “There is so much consultation.”

The officer’s report is merely ‘noted’, after numerous protests of frustration at the rate of change.

11.40pm: Call for action on Harrogate transport schemes

Conservative councillor Paul Haslam says “I’d like to see more action rather than more process” after an officer gives an update on phase two of the Harrogate Transport Improvement Programme.

The officer says the programme is an evolution of the Harrogate Congestion Study, which received more than 15,000 responses in 2020 and showed support for a park and ride bus service plus more active travel. The A61 Leeds Road was identified as the area for potential of the greatest improvements.

The officer says work on the second phase began in July, and she expects to have further details by end of 2022, promoting Cllr Haslam to say the issue is getting bogged down by process.

He also says a train station at Claro Road would ease traffic congestion.

11.15 Call for pilot 20mph zone approved

Nine vote in favour, two against and one abstain from Cllr Warneken’s motion to introduce a 20mph pilot.

But that doesn’t mean it will happen – it will now go to the county council executive, which will decide whether to act on the outcome.

11.01 Should there be a pilot 20mph scheme?

Green councillor Arnold Warneken calls for a pilot 20mph scheme. Several councillors speak in favour of reducing speed limits but Cllr Michael Harrison, a Conservative, says he is against it.

He says he admires the 20’s Plenty campaign for trying but says enforcement and capital spend are problems. He says there are highways issues in his division that have been hanging around for a while, which he would prefer to see dealing with.

10.53am £1m cost of implementing 20mph limits

Asked how much introducing 20mph limits would cost, council officer says the figure would be “looking at something north of a million pounds”, and would take at least 12 to 18 months to implement.

10.43am: Call for default 20mph speed limit

Cycling campaigner Malcolm Margolis (pictured) is reading a statement on behalf of 20’s Plenty calling for a default 20mph speed limit in towns and villages in Harrogate and Knaresborough.

A council officer says the county council recognises the benefits 20mph limits can bring and wants to make the roads as safe as possible and will continue to consider all options.

10.30am: Parish councillor calls for ‘kick up the backside’  

Howard West (right)

Councillor Howard West of Pannal and Burn Bridge Parish Council says nothing in the Harrogate Transport Improvements Programme, a report which is due to be discussed today, satisfies residents that plans are in place to prevent ‘gridlock’ in Harrogate’s western arc when thousands of new homes are built.

He says the council should “shelve the Maltkiln survey” until it has solved what’s happening now in the west of Harrogate. Cllr West said today’s recommendation is to ‘note the report’, adding:

“Our recommendation is for members to effect the equivalent of a kick up the backside and for meaningful action to get immediate results now rather than for procrastination and excuses.”

10.21am: Cycling group’s frustration over cycling schemes

Kevin Douglas, chair of Harrogate District Cycling Action, expresses concerns about the slow pace of the various cycling schemes.

The council officer says: “We accept there has been a delay” on the Otley Road scheme and cites “numerous design issues”. She adds consultation on phase two of the scheme is “due imminently”.

She also says plans public engagement on new plans for Oatlands Drive are “due to start this month”.

10.07am: Residents’ group criticises ‘nightmare’ Otley Road cycle path.

A statement is read by a members of Harrogate and Pannal Ash Residents’ Association saying consultation with residents about the Otley Road cycle path had uncovered comments such as it being “fundamentally flawed”, “a nightmare”, “an accident waiting to happen”.

He asks for a full, meaningful and proper consultation for the remainder of the Otley Road scheme “before designs are firmed up”. he adds:

“The general feeling is the scheme will do v little, if anything to offset the huge housing growth for thew west of Harrogate.”

A council officer says it plans to stage a “meet the designer event to make it possible to have those meaningful conversations going forward”.

Every month the Stray Ferret tries to find out what our local MPs have been up to in their constituencies and in the House of Commons.

September was a monumental month for the country. Queen Elizabeth II died after over 70 years on the throne, a new Prime Minister was appointed and proposed tax cuts by the Conservatives sent the value of the pound into a tailspin.

We asked our three Conservative MPs, Harrogate & Knaresborough’s Andrew Jones, Skipton and Ripon’s Julian Smith, and Selby and Ainsty’s Nigel Adams if they would like to highlight anything in particular that they have been doing this month, but, as usual, we did not receive a response from any of them.

Here is what we know after analysing their online presence.

Andrew Jones, Harrogate and Knaresborough MP.

In Harrogate and Knaresborough, here is what we found out on Mr Jones:

• Mr Jones praised Chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng’s mini-budget last week. He wrote on Community News: “There are a huge number of measures, many focused on our productivity and investment which are the platforms for future growth”.
• On September 10 in the House of Commons, Mr Jones paid tribute to the Queen on behalf of the residents of Harrogate & Knaresborough.
• Constituents can now find out what the MP has been up to through his new Instagram account that he launched this month.
• Following reports in the Stray Ferret about water pollution in Oak Beck, Mr Jones called for action against those responsible. He wrote on Community News: “I am keen that those responsible face a substantial penalty for doing so”.
• On September 28, Mr Jones posted a photo on his Instagram page of a Scout group in Knaresborough where he spoke to young people about life as an MP.
• The MP welcomed the government’s announcement that household energy bills will be capped at £2,500 a year for two years. He called the plan “a welcome step” on Community News.

Read more:

• Is there a part for you in Ripon Theatre Festival project?

• Knaresborough car finance company shortlisted for four awards

Julian Smith, MP for Skipton and Ripon.

In Skipton and Ripon, here is what we found on Mr Smith:

• In sharp contrast to fellow Harrogate district Tory MP, Andrew Jones, Mr Smith has been critical of the government’s proposed tax cuts and called them “wrong”.
• He has continued to offer his thoughts about the financial crisis on Twitter in recent days. On Wednesday he tweeted: “It is critical that the government is honest about the current situation & plays its part in stabilising markets. It can keep a growth plan but needs to make changes. Not doing so will only continue further stress & strain on UK citizens”.
• On Thursday, he tweeted: “The government must scrap 45p, take responsibility for the link between last Friday & the impact on peoples mortgages & make clear that it will do everything possible to stabilise markets & protect public services.”
• Following the Queen’s death, Mr Smith attended a service at Ripon Cathedral.
• Mr Smith attended the Nidderdale Show in Pateley Bridge. It was brought forward a day to Sunday September 18 due to the Queen’s funeral.

Nigel Adams, MP for Selby and Ainsty

In rural south Harrogate, here is what we found on Mr Adams:

• On September 6, the Boris Johnson loyalist resigned from cabinet ahead of new Conservative Party leader Liz Truss becoming Prime Minister. He was minister without portfolio.
• The latest MPs register of interests show Mr Adams was paid £3,950 by the Jamaica Tourist Board as part of a Lords and Commons Cricket delegation to Kingston. The trip was to celebrate 60 years of Jamaican independence.
• Mr Adams hailed King Charles III after he delivered his first address to the nation. He said: “It was as good as it gets, God save the King.”
• The MP got into a Twitter spat with Lib Dem leader Tim Farron after he joked about Liz Truss’ history with his party. “You’d struggle to fill a phone box full of ministers let alone a cabinet, so pipe down,” Mr Adams retorted.

The Green Party autumn conference was opened this afternoon by Harrogate man Arnold Warneken, North Yorkshire County Council councillor for Ouseburn.

Cllr Warneken was elected in May with 69% of the vote and he gave a passionate speech to delegates at Harrogate Convention Centre.

He recalled how he was first elected as a councillor 32 years ago to the then-Harrogate District Council.

In those days, he was the only Green Party councillor in the north of England.

After his recent return to local politics, he said the five Greens elected to the county council in May were “already starting to make a difference”. He accused the Tory-led council of “procrastinating” on the climate emergency.

Cllr Warneken also had some sharp words for Harrogate Spring Water and its plan to fell trees in Rotary Wood to expand its bottling plant.

He said:

“At the pump rooms, people came from all over the country to have our foul-tasting and smelly water heal them. It was dispensed in a ladle by Betty Lupton.

“However, 100 years later Betty Lupton has been replaced by Danone. Her ladle has been replaced by millions of plastic bottles produced by Harrogate Spring Water and Danone before being sent all over the world. Shame on them.”

He was followed by a speech from Green Party co-leaders Carla Denyer and Adrian Ramsay.

The three-day conference ends on Sunday.

Read more:

• Green Party chooses man to fight Andrew Jones in Harrogate and Knaresborough
• Value of North Yorkshire pension fund secure following crisis, says council

The Stray Ferret spoke to Cllr Warneken beforehand where he said he was “proud and honoured” to open the event.

Cllr Warneken added:

“We are at a turning point in Green politics. In 2018, we had 150 councillors, now in 2022 we have over 500. We are hoping we can get somebody to help Caroline Lucas MP in Parliament.

“We have Liberal Democrat councillor Pat Marsh speaking here on Sunday. That’s the way politics has to move forward. We’re hoping for a hung parliament so we can introduce PR. The future’s bright, the future’s green.”

Over 1,000 Green Party members will be coming to Harrogate this month for the party’s autumn conference.

It will take place at Harrogate Convention Centre from September 30 to October 2.

The conference theme is ‘The pathway to a fairer, greener country’ and topics will include the climate emergency and the cost of living crisis.

The Greens last came to Harrogate for their autumn conference in 2017.

The party had a successful local elections in May, winning five seats on North Yorkshire County Council, including Arnold Warneken in Ouseburn.

Co-leaders Carla Denyer and Adrian Ramsay will be delivering a keynote speech at 2pm on the first day of the conference.

Read more:

• Call for referendum over Harrogate town council
• Frustration over delays to new Harrogate steakhouse