RECORD oil prices and an increase in household energy bills pushed inflation up by 0.1 per cent to 1.2 per cent last month. Motorists paid an average of 2p more for a litre of unleaded petrol and diesel last month after oil prices surged above $55 a barrel
NORTHERN Foods was counting the cost of recent factory closures yesterday as it announced losses of nearly £36m. The company, which employs 300 staff at a frozen foods factory in Leeming Bar, North Yorkshire, said it made losses of £35.9m in the 26 weeks
A pub landlord plans to ban smoking - before the Government makes him. Nigel Stevens, owner of The Wyvill Arms, in Constable Burton, near Leyburn, North Yorkshire, says the move will be good for the health of his staff - and good for his business. The
UP to 160,000 homes could be built across the North-East over the next two decades in an ambitious attempt to reverse the region's population drain. The proposals to halt the decline in the region's population and bridge the North- South divide are among
MATTY Robson is hoping Hartlepool United's away day blues are over. Pool have suffered on the road this season, winning just once in League One and losing seven times. But, after four successive victories - three at home and a win at Conference side Carlisle
THE house where twin sisters Claire and Diane Sanderson, aged 27, died has been put on the market. The bodies of the sisters were discovered at the house in Camblesforth, near Selby, North Yorkshire, on July 18 . On the same day, pensioners James and
SEDGEFIELD trainer Ray Craggs sends rapidly improving Shape Up (1.00) to Southwell this afternoon in the hope that the gelding can complete a superb four-timer. Shape Up recorded his most recent victory at Musselburgh, comfortably holding at bay a bevy
BINGO players in Darlington raised £225 for a breast cancer charity. Customers at the Top Ten Bingo Club bought pink ribbons, put loose change into collecting tins and played free games of bingo, donating cash for their tickets. Club manager Bill Richardson
PROPOSALS to ban smoking in workplaces and most pubs could be a turning point in the battle to improve the region's poor health, according to health bosses. Responding to yesterday's White Paper Dr Bill Kirkup, regional director of public health for the
AN exhibition on ideas for the future of Bishop Auckland town centre, which was scheduled to start tomorrow, has been postponed. The display was due to be held at Bishop Auckland Town Hall library but is now planned for early next year. Design and architectural
A SECONDARY school that has suffered criticism in the past has been praised in an Ofsted report. Teachers and governors at Sunnydale School, in Shildon, have been told by inspectors that it is a "good school". The comprehensive school was earmarked for
A HARD-UP shop worker thought her luck was in when her beautician friend asked her to bank takings on her way home from having her nails done, a court heard yesterday. Instead of paying the money and cheques into the bank, Maria Gilby, 23, a mother of
DURHAM peace campaigners will hear eye witness accounts of conditions in the occupied territories of Palestine. The Durham County Palestine Solidarity Campaign is holding its annual meeting next week and its secretary Helen Attewell will talk about her
REVISED plans for more than 120 homes will be discussed tomorrow. Taylor Woodrow Developments had been granted permission to build 127 houses on land at Ewehurst Road, Flint Hill, near Stanley. But Derwentside District Council's development control committee
A HOTEL and catering recruitment business in Darlington is celebrating its success over the past year. Since its launch last November, North-East Chefs has supplied staff to leisure centres, hospitals, care homes, hotels and restaurants across the borough
SCHOOL pupils have been making charity boxes for people to fill with money. Allertonshire School in Northallerton is supporting Imagine, a charity with a number of projects in Mozambique, which include work with orphaned children and Aids sufferers. Staff
A COUNCIL is in line for a second national award, recognising its use of computer technology. Derwentside District Council's business support unit has been nominated for the Government's Beacon status for supporting new businesses. Peter McDowell, the
A MOTHER will put her artistic talents to the test in a charity challenge tomorrow. Dawn Knight, of Shield Row, near Stanley, is aiming to paint the face of every infant pupil at Shield Row Primary School, in the likeness of BBC Children in Need mascot
FIVE men have been arrested in connection with the kidnap of a businessman earlier this year. Tony Pattison, a building contractor, was snatched from his car at gunpoint as he ate sandwiches at the sea-front in Seaton Carew, near Hartlepool, in March.
DOCTORS last night accused the Government of misleading the public after it emerged that smoking will continue in a majority of pubs in many North-East towns. Health Secretary John Reid said his proposal to ban smoking in all licensed premises that serve
LEARNER driver Dawn Forster took a big sigh of relief when she finally passed her driving test - after nearly ten years and more than 1,000 lessons. The 32-year-old hairdresser endured ten practical tests, four theory tests and spent nine years and more
A SECOND rare bird has been seen flying in the skies over County Durham. The latest sighting of a red kite was in Newton Aycliffe. The bird was recognised after Yvonne Colley, of Newton Aycliffe, read in The Northern Echo about a red kite which had been
The family of a young RAF mechanic who died after taking part in a secret nerve gas test will seek compensation following a ruling that he was unlawfully killed. The verdict into the death of Ronald Maddison, from Consett, County Durham, returned by an
DOCTORS last night accused the Government of misleading the public after it emerged that smoking will continue in a majority of pubs in many North-East towns. Health Secretary John Reid said his proposal to ban smoking in all licensed premises that serve
Keen historian John Pringle is nearing the end of a project to trace the graves of all the 125 men honoured on his town's main war memorial. After four years of detective work he has only seven more resting places to find of troops from Barnard Castle
SHAUN Tait, the Australian paceman who endured a nightmare stint with Durham at the end of last season, has since twice improved his career-best figures. The work Durham's coaches did with 21-year-old Tait in sorting out his run-up has obviously paid
YOUNG striker Chris Brown wants to add a Championship goal to a growing number of first team appearances for Sunderland. The teenager turns 20 in the middle of December and would love to have his name on the scoresheet before that time as a sign that
We all accept that parents need as much help as they can get but what about carers, who don't choose their roles? Children are not the only people who need looking after. Last week, both the Labour and Conservative leaders announced their plans to help
PEOPLE ignoring court fines on Teesside face Christmas behind bars. Hundreds of fine-dodgers have already found out there is no escaping the long arm of the law. More than 220 were escorted to their local station by police and court enforcement officers
A 167-year-old school, described as a town's worst eyesore, is likely to be demolished - much to the delight of people living nearby. They gave a warm welcome yesterday to a plan to knock down the derelict building near the centre of Barnard Castle, County
A smoking ban is coming to a restaurant and pub near you, but not everybody is cheering. Barry Nelson listens to the arguments further to restrict smoking in public places as outlined in yesterday's Public Health White Paper. When Bill Kirkup returned
Grundy's Wonders (ITV Tyne Tees), My Life In Film (BBC3): John Grundy is an endangered species. Not because he spent the entire episode of Grundy's Wonders stuffing himself with cream cakes and coffee. He's under threat as the presenter of a regional
Workers at a brewery facing closure began a three-day strike yesterday as part of a campaign to save their jobs. Workers at the Boddingtons brewery, in Manchester, began the stoppage at 6am. They are planning a four-day strike from Monday. The brewery
RECORD oil prices and an increase in household energy bills pushed inflation up by 0.1 per cent to 1.2 per cent last month. Motorists paid an average of 2p more for a litre of unleaded petrol and diesel last month after oil prices surged above $55 a barrel
PLANS are in place to redevelop the site of a landmark building in the North-East, which had to be demolished after a fire two years ago. The former Top Rank bingo hall, between the High Street and West Row, in Stockton, was destroyed after arsonists
Troubled car company MG Rover has unveiled two concept models that may go into production at its Midlands plant. Rover, which has suffered plummeting sales this year, announced details of the MG GT and the Rover 75 coupe concept. A Rover spokesman said
VOLUNTEER groups in the region have received a cash boost from the Government. A number of groups shared grants from a £4m handout delivered by the Home Office's Volunteer Recruitment Fund. They included Student Community Action Newcastle University,
FIRST the Goode news, followed by a short (and entirely relevant) quiz on bingo lingo and by many other top of the shop responses to last week's Gadfly. It is to be one of those joyous columns written by its readers, and with only a little help from Lewis
A VILLAGE bobby has stepped up the campaign against vandalism and anti-social behaviour by installing police call boxes. The black boxes bearing Durham Police Constabulary's Streetsafe logo have been installed in West Cornforth. Designated beat officer
A POLICE officer who helped to turn around the deprived former mining community where he was born has won an award. PC Dave Barrass, 42, joined Durham Constabulary 11 years ago and spent six years as the beat officer for Pelton Fell, near Chester-le-Street
AN out-of-work actor found dead in his council house died of stab wounds to his chest, police revealed last night. But County Durham detectives have not ruled out the possibility it was self-inflicted. Police were called at about 4pm on Sunday to The
VOLUNTEER groups in the region have received a cash boost from the Government. A number of groups shared grants from a £4m handout delivered by the Home Office's Volunteer Recruitment Fund. They included Student Community Action Newcastle University,
A MAN who died after he was dragged underneath a train has been named. Sonny Rae, 19, of Railway Terrace, North Shields, North Tyneside, suffered severe head injuries after he fell off a train on the Tyne and Wear Metro system on Sunday. He was dragged
Grundy's Wonders (ITV Tyne Tees) My Life In Film (BBC3) JOHN Grundy is an endangered species. Not because he spent the entire episode of Grundy's Wonders stuffing himself with cream cakes and coffee. He's under threat as the presenter of a regional non-news
A NIGHTCLUB is launching a Studio 54 theme night with rollergirls, bus boys and disco music. The Atlantic bar and club, off Duke Street, Darlington, will be kitted out to represent the exclusive New York 1980's nightclub Studio 54 and will feature a gallery
A CHARITY that supports homeless people in Darlington is appealing for volunteers. First Stop's Pledge a Night campaign aims to help street sleepers get out of the cold. Two people died on the streets of the town when temperatures were at their lowest
PEOPLE are being invited to use the newly opened caf bar within a theatre complex. An large serving area of the Gala Theatre at Durham has been refurbished to create a new caf bar, Intervals. Theatre bosses hope people will drop in to sample the fare
A FATHER repeatedly punched a police officer in the face after he intervened in a domestic dispute at the man's home. The policeman heard shouting from his neighbour's house and went round to see Andrew Bennett lying on top of his wife, Susanne, and screaming
We all accept that parents need as much help as they can get but what about carers, who don't choose their roles? Children are not the only people who need looking after. Last week, both the Labour and Conservative leaders announced their plans to help
DRINK drivers could find themselves named and shamed by the police this Christmas. Sergeant Mick Rookes, of Richmondshire Police, has vowed that the names of offenders caught by him and his colleagues will be published in Leyburn Life, a community news
A SCHEME to pull down a Women's Institute hall and replace it with housing and a new community hall in a North Yorkshire village has run into opposition. A planning application has been submitted to replace the Scriven WI Hall, near Knaresborough, with
SWINGS and slides may finally return to a sprawling housing estate after a campaign to buy play equipment was launched. The fundraising campaign to buy play equipment for the Newton Hall estate in Durham City gets under way with a coffee morning next
PUPILS in north Durham are turning their rubbish into artwork as part of a new paper recycling scheme. The Derwentside Schools Paper Recycling Scheme, sees schools presented with everything needed for a class to make its own recycled paper. The pack also
AFTER two years in the international wilderness, Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink has left the door open for a dramatic return to the Holland fold. The Middlesbrough striker was overlooked by his country's quest for European Championship glory in Portugal during
A DURHAM man has returned from the trip of a lifetime running in the New York Marathon. Neil Defty, a project team leader in Durham University's curriculum, evaluation and management centre, entered the race, his first full marathon, on a whim. He had
YOUNG Army cadets have been honoured for their hard work within the group and on an outside project with an awards night. Willington Army Cadet Force praised the consistent efforts of its 19 members at the event at Willington Cricket Club, on Sunday.
SPANISH Primera Liga outfit Villarreal are considering a January swoop for unsettled Newcastle United winger Laurent Robert. Robert's life at St James' Park took another turn for the worse yesterday when the Frenchman expressed his disbelief about his
A WEB design company is leading the way in the development of accessible websites for disabled people. Digital Data, in Bishop Auckland, provides an advice and design service aimed at bringing existing websites in line with new regulations or developing
A MAN found in a veterinary nurse's private flat told the nurse he was looking for treatment for his girlfriend's injured dog, a court heard yesterday. Prosecutor Alison Whiteley told Harrogate magistrates that when Daniel Ward was disturbed in the premises
PRIMARY school youngsters have given up some of their toys to help make Christmas better for other children in third world countries. Pupils at Eldon Lane Primary School, near Bishop Auckland, have filled 63 shoe boxes full of gifts which will be sent
LEARNER driver Dawn Forster took a big sigh of relief when she finally passed her driving test - after nearly ten years and more than 1,000 lessons. The 32-year-old hairdresser endured ten practical tests, four theory tests and spent nine years and more
SCHOOLchildren in east Cleveland have won a civic pat on the back for being in a class of their own. Deputy Mayor of Redcar and Cleveland Councillor Ann Higgins presented 18 schools with Healthy School Standard plaques, yesterday. Councillor Steve Kay
A COUNTRY park in Hartlepool has scooped an award for its facilities and staff. Summerhill, a 100-acre site on the western edge of the town, has been accredited as a quality assured visitor attraction by the Visitor Attraction Quality Assurance Service
A ROW is brewing over a decision to axe a library's cafe. Bookworms have signed a petition protesting at cost saving plans to stop serving refreshments at Redcar Library. MP Vera Baird said Redcar and Cleveland Borough Council was behaving like Scrooge
RAY Mallon will visit Hartlepool tomorrow to speak about the new Licensing Act. Mr Mallon, Mayor of Middlesbrough, has been invited to speak at Hartlepool Borough Council's licensing committee about the controversial Act, which introduces the opportunity
A PUSH by Hartlepool to become a Fairtrade town is a step nearer after councillors backed the initiative. Councillors unanimously passed a resolution at a recent full meeting of the Hartlepool Borough Council to support the charity. The purpose of a Fairtrade
STUDENTS have been recognised by a college for their hard work and achievements at an awards ceremony. More than 160 students stepped up to receive awards at the event hosted by Redcar and Cleveland College. Nicola Hansford gained an access certificate
Like most girls I have had the misfortune of being on the end of a host of bad chat-up lines. It doesn't seem to matter how new age men become, give them a few drinks and they seem to think they can impress you with a cheesy quip rather than a decent
FIRST the Goode news, followed by a short (and entirely relevant) quiz on bingo lingo and by many other top of the shop responses to last week's Gadfly. It is to be one of those joyous columns written by its readers, and with only a little help from Lewis
WORRIED residents fear work to decontaminate a former gasworks could have exposed them to cancer-causing chemicals. People living around the Heworth Green site, in York, have hit out at those responsible for removing earth from the heavily-polluted industrial
FIRST the Goode news, followed by a short (and entirely relevant) quiz on bingo lingo and by many other top of the shop responses to last week's Gadfly. It is to be one of those joyous columns written by its readers, and with only a little help from Lewis
Simon Jones touched down in Namibia yesterday warning Glamorgan that he may look elsewhere if he is not given more of a chance to impress in their championship-winning one-day side and gain the valuable experience required to prosper at international
Detectives investigating the death of out-of-work actor Stephen Milburn this morning stepped up house-to-house inquiries in The Grove area of Coxhoe, near Durham City. A mobile police station was this morning opened near the scene of the death and forensic
DARLINGTON TOWN CENTRE: Now that the people of Darlington have made their attitude and feelings quite clear over the question of a North-East assembly, I would now request them to make their feelings known regarding the proposed Darlington town centre
FURNITURE retailer MFI offered hope that it may have got to grips with the delivery problems blamed for its dismal trading over recent months. The group, which employs 600 staff at its Hygena factory, in Stockton, said a review of the company's supply
POLICE have declared a special high visibility operation involving 107 people to be a success. Around 60 police officers were joined by British Transport Police, Ministry of Defence police and members of their partner agencies to patrol Ryedale from 7am
FASHION house Burberry pledged to give shareholders a better return after announcing another strong set of trading figures. The group, which is two-thirds owned by Argos-owner GUS, said it would spend about £250m on a share buy-back programme, as well
A Fathers 4 Justice campaigner who contested the Hartlepool by-election was today given a 12-month conditional discharge after admitting assaulting a fellow candidate at the count. A court heard how Paul Watson threw purple powder over Liberal Democrat
REFEREE Phil Joslin may have been Darlington's villain on Saturday, but the Newark official redeemed himself yesterday after Brian Close escaped a ban. After studying video evidence Joslin has admitted he was wrong to send Close off in the closing stages
AMBITIOUS boxing boss Dave Garside has warned title-challenger Marc Callaghan to expect the unexpected when he goes toe-to-toe with Michael Hunter in Hartlepool on Friday night. The Borough Hall will be packed full of townsfolk hoping to see Hunter defend
Matt Kipling and Noel Clough rode away with maximum points in the latest rounds of two regional cyclo-cross leagues. Kipling, the Bishop Auckland rider now sponsored by the Thirsk-based Alpine Rootz team, fought from behind to finish 90 seconds clear
It is greatly to the credit of the family of Ian Gourley, the 15-year-old Peterlee boy who was killed by a joyrider careering round a playing field, that they feel justice has been done with the ten year jail sentence imposed on the 23-year-old driver
The biggest shake-up in Darlington's town centre for more than 100 years has taken a major step forward. Stuart Mackintosh assesses the reaction to the controversial proposals and looks to the future... Critics of the radical revamping of a North-East
IN proposing to outlaw smoking in the vast majority of enclosed public places, the Government risks being accused of running a "nanny state". However, opposition to the ban on civil liberty grounds is flawed. It is a fallacy that tobacco only harms the
REFEREE Phil Joslin may have been Darlington's villain on Saturday, but the Newark official redeemed himself yesterday after Brian Close escaped a ban. After studying video evidence Joslin has admitted he was wrong to send Close off in the closing stages
