Road sign for Barcelona appears in Somerset town 700 miles away The Somerset sign swapper has gone international

Ok, who swapped the 'Welcome to Midsomer Norton' sign with one from the Barcelona-Valencia highway?

We've emailed the Spanish government and they think you've been really silly

#LDReporter #Somerset

www.somersetlive.co.uk/news/somerse...

A picture of the article in the Bristol Post, titled: "Pier we go: Glory days can return as landmark finally saved"

A picture of the article in the Bristol Post, titled: "Pier we go: Glory days can return as landmark finally saved"

Great to see the feature I wrote on the long battle to save #WestonSuperMare's historic Birnbeck Pier as a beautiful double page spread in this weekend's Bristol Post

#LDReporter #buyapaper

The Weston, Worle, & Somerset Mercury with the front page story 'Calls to revive lost railway station' and the Bath Chronicle with the front page 'Councillors drowned out by protest'

Great to see my stories on the front page in both #Bath and #WestonSuperMare this week

#LDReporter #buyapaper

Lots of politics in today's #Bath Chronicle

Some #LDReporter pieces by me on the 4.99% council tax rise approved on Tuesday, another controversial low traffic neighbourhood, and why the chair of the local branch of Reform UK has been wearing an SS uniform

#buyapaper

To put that £2.4m into context, the cuts to North Somerset's libraries which I've covered over the last year will save the council £433k

North Somerset now has at most a month to find a way to save five and a half times that much

That is on top of £18m of cuts already planned

The front page of the Western Daily Press on 11/2/25 with headline: 'Council tax hike gets the go-ahead: Government grants North Somerset rise of 8.99% from April'

The government has given North Somerset permission to raise council tax by 8.99%

But that still leaves the council £2.4m short of balancing its budget

Read the #LDReporter story here: www.somersetlive.co.uk/news/local-n...

Plans submitted for new Bath Fashion Museum The old post office will be transformed into the museum, which will open onto a 'new public square' in the heart of Bath

Huge news for #Bath

The planning application has gone live for the new Bath Fashion Museum

#LDReporter

www.somersetlive.co.uk/news/local-n...

Councillors grill top officials as social worker strike looms 'We are working hard with colleagues to find a solution'

At a scrutiny panel on Monday, councillors grilled top council officers about the dispute

Liz Hardman (Paulton, Labour) said: 'It's never black and white but it looks like quite a simple issue here.'

Read the #LDReporter story here: www.somersetlive.co.uk/news/local-n...

Bath and North East Somerset Council is facing a potential strike by some children's social care workers

Team managers are voting in an industrial action ballot now

'Morale is shot to bits' we are told

www.somersetlive.co.uk/news/local-n...

In today's Bath Chronicle #buyapaper #LDReporter

North Somerset could join WECA by the end of the year Council leader Mike Bell said: 'The mayoral authority is a force for good in the region — we need to be part of it'

It also means two years with a mayor North Somerset didn't get to vote for

Ms Godwin said: 'The electoral cycle is what it is and there’s not an election until 2029. But the benefits for residents can come much sooner'

Read the #LDReporter story here: www.somersetlive.co.uk/news/local-n...

2026 could see the return of the County of Avon A major change to local government which could soon go ahead is seen by some councillors as an unwelcome blast from the past

Why is it so controversial? Largely because it is seen by some as putting the County of Avon back together.

Mike Bell says that's 'nonsense' as a mayor-run combined authorities are something different

For a bit of the history read my feature here:
www.somersetlive.co.uk/news/local-n...

WECA is a 'force for good' and not joining in 2017 was a mistake, says North Somerset Council leader Mike Bell

My interview with him & West of England Mayor Helen Godwin is in today's Western Daily Press

somersetlive.co.uk/news/local-n...

#buyapaper #LDReporter

Weston-super-Mare car park scandal ‘the worst deal any council has ever signed’ The multi-storey is currently losing the council about a quarter of a million pounds a year — and it is locked into leasing it until 2058

How did this happen and why can't the council take legal action to get out of the lease?

Read my #LDReporter story and watch my interview with council leader Mike Bell here:
www.somersetlive.co.uk/news/somerse...

North Somerset Council is losing around a quarter of a million pounds a year on this badly-built car park and is locked into the lease until 2058

The council leader called it: "The worst deal any council has ever signed"

#LDReporter #WestonSuperMare #Weston-super-Mare

Bath Rugby stadium will get built after Government green light "We are thrilled to have received this news so swiftly"

Big news for #Bath

Bath Rugby says it has been told by the Secretary of State that he will not be calling in the plans for their stadium

It means that the council is now free to grant the planning permission councillors voted in favour of last week

www.somersetlive.co.uk/sport/other-...

Chippy told to remove picnic tables that 'could be used as weapons' The police have been locked in a bizarre furniture row with the owner of the Grand Pier

As Churchill so nearly said: "We will fight them with the benches"

My #LDReporter story on a bizarre row between the police and the owner of the Grand Pier in Weston-super-Mare

www.somersetlive.co.uk/whats-on/wha...

Reform, buses, and taking over from Dan Norris - WECA mayor's first 100 days 100 days into being the West of England Metro Mayor, we speak to Helen Godwin

I sat down with Helen Godwin for a long chat about her first 100 days as WECA mayor

From how her transport plans remind me of Keir Starmer to how she plans to see off Reform and the Greens and be re-elected in 2029, read the #LDReporter story here:

www.somersetlive.co.uk/news/local-n...

Librarians 'shushed' at work over closure and cuts plans No talking (about council cuts) in the library!

As the area's #LDReporter, I've written a lot about these cuts this week. But when I tried to speak to a librarian, I got kicked out of Worle Library

It turns out there is a strict “no talking (to journalists) in the library" rule

Read the story here:

www.somersetlive.co.uk/news/local-n...

How major council cuts will affect your local library Three libraries face closure and all other council libraries will see their hours cut

While most libraries in the district will stay open, all will see their hours cut to some extent

The council is running a consultation on the plans until October 24 and I have gone through the cuts proposed at every library in North Somerset here:

www.somersetlive.co.uk/news/somerse...

It is one of three libraries 'highly likely' to be closed as the council cuts its spending on libraries by about a fifth

The libraries in Pill and Winscombe are also facing closure, although the council says one of them could be saved if more cuts are made elsewhere

Library faces closure as building has 'extensive wet rot' It was moved out of its purpose built 1960s building into the more than 100-year-old former school eight years ago to save money

🧵 Eight years ago, North Somerset Council moved Worle Library out of its purpose built 1960s building into a more than 100-year-old former school

It was meant to cut costs but 'extensive wet rot' discovered in the old school means it now faces closure:

www.somersetlive.co.uk/news/somerse...

Unique church to be demolished without a vote being cast It's been described as the 'sack' of the village

It's decided. A village near Bath's unique brutalist church will be demolished to make way for housing

Despite being locally listed last year, the plans have been approved without councillors even getting a vote

Full #LDReporter story here:
www.somersetlive.co.uk/news/local-n...

New bin rule that could cost shops £3k to shut at 5pm The council wants to change Bath's business bin collection timings by an hour — but councillors say it has not been thought through

Nine councillors have launched a bid to stop a change to Bath's evening business waste collection

Why? The change could inadvertently cost shops upwards of £3k a year to close at 5pm

Read the full #LDReporter story here:

www.somersetlive.co.uk/news/local-n...

Ghost town car park losing council quarter of a million a year And the council has no choice but to keep paying the lease until 2058

This car park is losing North Somerset Council over a quarter of a million pounds a year

But, under a contract signed 13 years ago, the council is locked into leasing the mostly unusable car park for decades to come

Read the full #LDReporter story here:
www.somersetlive.co.uk/news/somerse...

North Somerset MP rebels against government for his disabled son 'North Somerset didn’t elect me to be robot'

Many normally loyal Labour MPs are rebelling against the government over the planned cuts to PIP

One of them is Sadik Al-Hassan, who was elected North Somerset's first ever Labour MP last year

And he has a very personal reason why

#LDReporter

www.somersetlive.co.uk/news/local-n...

Police officer dismissed over basketball row standing for Reform UK He was dismissed from Avon and Somerset Police in 2019

A former police officer dismissed over a “misuse of his position” in a row about a basketball is standing as a #ReformUK candidate

If elected, he would be Jacob Rees-Mogg's local councillor

Read the full #LDReporter story here:
www.somersetlive.co.uk/news/local-n...

400 NHS redundancies expected with 50 per cent spending cut ordered “We feel devastated by what we are being asked to do”

About 400 people across the two integrated care boards covering Bristol, North Somerset, South Glos, and Gloucestershire proper could be made redundant

One CEO said: 'We feel devastated by what we are being asked to do.'

Read the #LDReporter story here:
www.somersetlive.co.uk/news/somerse...

Last night, a politician told me I write "clickbait"

So to clear up any confusion: I don't just write stories to get lots of clicks — I want to get lots of people to #buyapaper too :)

There's a great Bath Chronicle in shops all week

#LDReporter

Fight launched to stop 190 homes being built in flood zone A battle over plans to build 190 homes in Yatton has 'national significance'

A hugely important case not just for Yatton and North Somerset, but for the country

Do Labour's new housing targets mean councils have to allow homes to be built in flood zones?

The High Court will decide

Read the #LDReporter story here:

www.somersetlive.co.uk/news/somerse...

Food truck faces £1,000 fine if customers don’t pay 10p 'The way their policy is written doesn’t cover people like me'

A Thai food truck from Cheddar is locked in a bizarre battle with North Somerset Council — all over 10p

Read the #LDReporter story here:

www.somersetlive.co.uk/news/local-n...