http://www.champnews.com All the latest Formby news from Champion Newspapers en-uk Copyright 2007 Champion Media Group. All Rights Reserved http://www.champnews.com/html/newsstory.asp?id=8126 Calls to end “a magic circle of NHS insiders rotating from job to job” have been made, following last week's announcement that NHS Sefton's chief executive is moving to a new role. Leigh Griffin will move from the primary care trust to head up the newly established North West Centre for Transformation in Health and Wellbeing, based at the Department of Health North West in Manchester. Southport MP John Pugh has urged NHS Sefton to consult with the public when deciding on a replacement for Mr Griffin. He told The Champion: “They really must consult with the public in appointing a new chief executive and, if that is not possible, allow people that the public actually elect to play a part in the selection of the new boss. I would suggest elected members of the council's health scrutiny committee should be involved. ”Our health service is run by a magic circle of NHS insiders rotating from job to job. What we need is someone with NHS experience at the top but who is 'the people's choice' for this hugely powerful position. “We need to find someone who answers to us not the NHS hierarchy.” NHS Sefton chair, Paul Acres, said: “Leigh has worked very hard to develop NHS Sefton thus far. We are extremely grateful to him for the progress made and we wish him every success in his new regional role. ”We are working with NHS North West, the Strategic Health Authority, to ensure that the right successor to Leigh is appointed as soon as possible, to lead us in delivering our plans, and in meeting the ambitions we have set for NHS Sefton, and for the local people we serve in the crucial years ahead. “We intend to strengthen NHS Sefton to ensure we achieve even more in the future than we have done in the PCT's first three and a half years. Leigh's successor will be critical in leading this work to improve health and health services in Sefton. ”Before Leigh takes up his new post later this month, an interim chief executive will be appointed to lead the organisation until that right successor is found. “We will be seeking to involve local elected representation in selecting a successor and LINks, the independent organisation that represents patients' interests, will be directly involved.” By Natasha Young 11/03/2010 11:30:00 http://www.champnews.com/html/newsstory.asp?id=8125 In 1997 she was told it was impossible for a Labour MP to win the Crosby and Formby seat but Claire Curtis-Thomas proved her doubters wrong and took the constituency from Conservatives by 7,182 votes. The Labour MP will be standing down at this year’s election. She told The Champion: “In 1997 the chances of me winning were thought to be impossible as the community had never been Labour and had always been Conservative. So it was extraordinary to win.” Mrs Curtis-Thomas was one of the 101 female Labour Party Members of Parliament – known as Blair’s Babes - who played a massive part in Tony Blair’s landslide victory that year. “I think prior to 97 under the Conservative Government, politics had been mainly one colour, one sex, and one gender and the largest influx of Labour women MPs meant that the party could better reflect the people it was supposed to be representing,” Mrs Curtis-Thomas continued. The Labour MP hit the national headlines in 2004 when she topped the list of MPs’ expenses claiming £168,889 including £19,038 on postage. She said: “I took a clobbering for the amount of correspondence I sent and for my travel from Crosby to London. My figures were compared with other MPs with tiny amounts of correspondence and travel. I did not want people to not know what was going on in their community.” Mrs Curtis-Thomas also believes that the MP’s expenses system “has yet to settle down to a reasonable regime.” The system was surrounded in controversy last year when The Daily Telegraph published questionable MP claims. The Crosby and Formby MP continued: “The MP’s expenses system has gone from the ludicrous to the ridiculous. “I think there is now an extraordinary level of scrutiny. But we have always prepared receipts for everything. “I hope it settles down otherwise for my successor it will be difficult. I think MPs in the future may have to subsidise their own activities.” The Labour MP has said that the hate mail she received over her expense claims was one of the reasons she was standing down. “We were treated appallingly. You try to be honest, but when you get a retrospection of rules it is very difficult.” During her 17 years as an MP, Mrs Curtis-Thomas was behind backbench legislation to ban top-shelf soft porn from newsagents, which now looks like becoming law. She commented: “I successfully promoted the issue to the point the government realised it was a real problem.” The MP is going back to work in engineering and said that campaigning on behalf of people who had suffered miscarriages of justice was the highlight of her time in office. And she believes that the Prime Minister Gordon Brown did not at first have the interpersonal skills that Tony Blair had. Mrs Curtis-Thomas may be leaving Parliament, but she is not disillusioned with politics. “I will continue to be a card carrying member of Labour party, and will do what I can to support the Labour Party.” By Henry James 11/03/2010 11:13:00 http://www.champnews.com/html/newsstory.asp?id=8123 Southport and Ormskirk Hospital NHS Trust has blasted claims by the BBC that it “failed” on core standards when its self assessments were double-checked. A BBC Panorama investigation revealed on Monday (March 8) that spot checks by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) had found 60% of hospitals in England were not accurately assessing their performance. A report on the BBC's website went on to claim that when just four of the 44 'core standards' in assessments from 28 hospitals in 2009 were double-checked, Southport and Ormskirk “failed in three of the four areas checked. The only other hospital to fail in three standards was Peterborough, meanwhile six were wrong in two out of the four standards and nine got their assessment wrong in one of the four standards. A spokesman for Southport and Ormskirk Hospital NHS Trust told The Champion: "The article on the BBC website entitled 'Spot-checks reveal mistakes when hospitals self-certify' is somewhat misleading. “In the annual Healthcheck in 2009 the CQC rated the trust as good. The only criticism we received from the CQC did not impact on direct patient care. "The BBC claims that Southport and Ormskirk Hospital NHS Trust 'failed' in 3 out of 4 core areas. This is not correct in two ways; first, there are 44 core standards, not four. Second, we did not 'fail'. The Care Quality Commission did not agree with our assessment and said we had not met the requirements. We did meet the requirements of the other 41 of the 44 core standards. "In all three of the core standards where the CQC did not agree with our assessment, the reasons were to do with our recording of what we had done and the processes in place to measure them. It was not a criticism of what we had actually achieved and was not connected to direct patient care. "The BBC list 17 hospitals where there were 'inspection failures' and it implies we are worse that 15 of these hospitals. In fact when the overall rating given by the CQC is looked at, we are better than 13 of the hospitals and equal with three."   By Natasha Young 10/03/2010 09:09:00 http://www.champnews.com/html/newsstory.asp?id=8118 New controversial Hydropower Turbines could be placed in Banks as Government officials earmark the area as a potential future site. A report has been released this week by the Environment Agency which shows the sites where the new turbines could be placed to meet national renewable energy targets. The proposed turbines could provide enough electricity to power up to around 850,000 homes and produce 3% of the country's 2020 renewable electricity needs. The report shows six possible locations for Hydropower Turbines in the Southport region that have a high sensitivity to harming the areas environment. But the site in Banks was shown in the report to have a low environmental sensitivity rating meaning that this is the most likely site in Sefton where the turbines could be placed. The proposed locations have angered environmental activists who claim that the turbines carry huge risks to sensitive environments. Not to be confused with off-shore wind turbines, the hydropower turbines are built on rivers and are instead turned by trapped water. Plans have been unveiled to use similar tidal power in the Mersey Estuary and concerns have been raised for the safety of wildlife in the proposed areas. Peter Robertson, the RSPB's conservation manager for Northern England said: "The RSPB supports clean renewable energy schemes but only if they do not pose a significant threat to the environment. "Old-fashioned methods of generating tidal power carry huge risks to sensitive environments." But Environment Agency officials insist that the potential turbine sites will be chosen carefully and could even be beneficial for fish migration. "Some hydropower schemes have the potential to deliver low carbon electricity and improve the local environment for wildlife, for example by improving fish migration. But there will inevitably be some sites where the risk to the environment outweighs the benefits of power generation." The Environment Agency project have published a new map as part of the report which shows where hydropower could be deployed in England to help tap into the unused power potential of British rivers. Peter Robertson added: "Rather than waste taxpayers money on feasibility schemes based around old-fashioned tidal energy methods that wreck the environment, this money should be invested in emerging technologies that have a minimal impact on wildlife and precious habitats." By David Raven  10/03/2010 08:46:00 http://www.champnews.com/html/newsstory.asp?id=8116 Dreamboats and Petticoats, Liverpool Empire Theatre   The sixties were full of fun – remembered for the first man on the moon, England’s World Cup victory and Coronation Street’s first episode being broadcast – among many things. It was a decade of ‘first times’ and Dreamboats and Petticoats on stage at the Liverpool Empire brings back memories of music, youth and love through a fantastic, lively and electric show. It tells the story of young dreamer Bobby, who isn’t scared to strive for what he wants – to be a successful songwriter and own his own electric guitar (with amplifier). Opportunities open up for him to start the journey to his dream, although he is distracted along the way – yes you guessed it – there’s a girl involved (a Runaround Sue to be accurate). Through the youth club he attends, St Mungo’s, Bobby is entered into a competition to win a recording with a top agency – all he has to do is write a hit song. He enlists the help of young Laura, who is madly in love with him, although he’s to busy chasing the girl at the youth club with the biggest bust – Sexy Sue. Unfortunately for Bobby Sexy Sue is chasing cocky ‘real man’ Norman – are you keeping up? The show is packed with no less than 40 sixties songs, all performed in fantastic context with the tale of young love and big dreams With a live and kicking youth club in Essex, a day trip to South End (and the Tunnel of Love) there’s no shortage of action. Each cast member is great apart and sensational together, with the ladies in particular belting out fantastic tunes showing off their powerful voices, teamed with flawless dance moves and brilliant choreography. Featuring hit songs like Teenager in Love, Let’s dance and Let’s Twist Again, it’s no wonder the show partners a best-selling album. The live band, who are also part of the company are on stage throughout the production and are the icing on the cake, particularly Bethany Compson-Bradford on the saxophone. Filled with witty lines referring to today’s society, including the economic downturn and the perdition that the new TV programme Coronation Street ‘won’t last’ there are plenty of laughs. If you’ve ever been young and in love, or had a dream you were determined to follow, this is the show for you. Wear your dancing shoes though – I guarantee packed isles come final curtain.   Champ Verdict – 4.5/5 – Get ready to twist!   Dreamboats and Petticoats runs at the Liverpool Empire until March 13. Box office: 0844 847 2525 www.LiverpoolEmpire.org.uk.   Rebecca Keegan 09/03/2010 08:10:00 http://www.champnews.com/html/newsstory.asp?id=8115 Review Stop Messing About, Liverpool Empire Theatre   My first impression was that I would find this play a bit dull – I’m a fan of bells and whistles, changing scenes and big shows, so when the set of a 60s BBC recording studio was clearly the full length backdrop, I was ready to start clock watching. That was until five minutes in, after an audience warm up and introduction to the show had me giggling in my seat and the metaphor-tastic sketches. I can’t say it brought back memories fir me – as I wasn’t yet in the world when the well-known radio series was broadcast, but the education into the ‘good old days’ was fantastic. You don’t have to be a Kenneth Williams fan to enjoy this show, it offers something for everyone – it’s fast paced and full of double entendres – constantly keeping the audience on their feet (or more precisely, on their seats). Some jokes of course, didn’t sink in right away, and during the interval I was surrounded by people explaining various lines to their friends, with further laughter erupting as the punch sunk in. Although there were no big changes to make, the cast of four were constantly running from mic to mic in the recording studio taking on the roll of different, often eccentric characters. Through an instant change in accent, dialect and facial expression, the cast did a fantastic job of completely transforming through characters. This play is cheeky, fun, fast – and sometimes a little close to the edge. Stop messing about and grab your tickets now to this Kenneth Williams extravaganza. Champ Verdict – 3/5   Stop Messing About runs at the Liverpool Empire until Saturday, March 6. Tickets range from £16. Box office: 0844 847 2525 www.LiverpoolEmpire.org.uk Rebecca Keegan 05/03/2010 05:33:00 http://www.champnews.com/html/newsstory.asp?id=8107 Sefton Council will have to cut its workforce in the next three to five years, it has been claimed. Speaking ahead of tomorrow's (Thursday, March 4, 2010) full council meeting, during which the council tax in Sefton will be set for the next financial year, council leader Tony Robertson told the Champion: “Probably the most significant thing we were facing was the redundancies of 60 staff but we've managed to resolve that. "At the moment that agreement is for the next financial year. There is going to have to be a reduction of Sefton Council's workforce in the next three to five years. "Until we get a new government and and budget we don't know how bad the future is going to be." The claims follow a BBC investigation earlier this week, in which a survey was carried out across the countries local authorities to reveal their plans for budgets and cuts over the next three to five years. In the survey, Sefton Council estimated it would see a 10-15% reduction in spending in real terms over the next three to five year, excluding schools. However, when asked how many employees (full time equivalent) the council has now, and how expects the total to changed in the next therr to five years, the council did not give any figures, answering “N/A” to both sections. Meanwhile Liberal Democrat Cllr Robertson said he was fairly confident there will be an all-party agreement for the next year's council tax budget at tomorrow's Southport Town Hall meeting. He added: “We've been trying to keep the tax rise down as much as possible but if you cut it too much it will rise again in the next few years.” Sefton Tory leader, Cllr Paula Parry, said: “The last few years it's gone up by 3% and we're working on a lower level this year.” However, Cllr Parry added that requests for help in areas such as community care have been higher this year, which will have an affect on council tax. By Natasha Young         03/03/2010 05:25:00 http://www.champnews.com/html/newsstory.asp?id=8098 Moves to reinstate a railway linking Southport with Ormskirk and Preston have been snubbed by Network Rail in its vision for the region's train travel. A study looking into how to improve rail links between the North West cities, released last week as part of a £530m investment from Network Rail to improve travel across the North of England, makes reccomendations of several projects across the North West but omits any mention of the campaign to bring back the Buscough Curves, which would connect both towns with each other and the Lancashire city. “Network Rail have missed out on something that would greatly benefit this part of the North West, as it would have joined Southport and Ormskirk by rail, as well as joining both up with cities beyond that. It's a shame it hasn't been considered in this study,” said Sefton council and Merseytravel committee member David Sumner. “We will continue to campaign for the Burscough Curves through the Local Transport Plan, and hopefully we will still see this important rail link reinstated in the near future.” The Network Rail Northern Hub Study, released last week, makes a number of reccomendations for the North West region, including direct links between Liverpool and Bradford for the first time, but the majority of the proposals are concentrated in the Greater Manchester area to improve links to and from that city. “Most of the railway in the North was built in the 19th Century by a number of competing companies. Unlike today, there was no single company like Network Rail responsible for planning the rail network,” said Network Rail in the study. “In the 1960s and 1970s, with fewer people travelling by rail, many lines in the North were axed. However, more people now choose to travel by rail than at any time since 1945, and increasing amounts of freight are transported across the North. This growth is expected to continue over the next 20 to 30 years and beyond.” Campaigns to bring back the Burscough Curves, a half mile stretch of abandoned track which would link the Southport to Manchester and Ormskirk to Preston lines together, have already attracted the support of West Lancashire MP Rosie Cooper and Southport MP John Pugh, as well as members of both Sefton Council and West Lancashire Borough Council. Along with linking the two towns to Preston, any Burscough Curves work would also raise the possibility of bringing towns on Merseyrail's Ormskirk branch line, including Maghull and Aintree, into a direct rail link with Preston. Councillor Sumner has also launched a petition on the Downing Street website to garner regional support for the Burscough Curves. To sign it visit the petitions website at http://petitions.number10.gov.uk/BurscoughCurves. By David Simister       24/02/2010 06:27:00 http://www.champnews.com/html/newsstory.asp?id=8094 Staff at a Formby Village travel agents were left “shaken” after the shop was allegedly targeted by two armed men. At around 5.45pm on Friday (February 19, 2010) Merseyside Police officers were called to the Thomson travel agents in Chapel Lane, following reports the men entered the store with knives and demanded staff opened the safe before stealing a large quantity of cash, travellers cheques and foriegn currency. They then left the scene on foot. According to police there were no customers in the shop as it had already closed for the day, but three members of staff - two women in their late 30s and a man in his 20s - were not hurt but had been left extremely shaken by the ordeal. The two offenders are described as being white, between 5ft 8ins and 5ft 10ins in height, and were wearing dark-coloured jeans and tops, with hats and scarves covering their faces. At least one of them spoke with a Liverpudlian accent and both were carrying knives. A witness appeal has now been launched by detectives, urging anyone who witnessed the robbery or saw anything suspicious in the village minutes before the incident to come forward. Detective Sergeant Neil Blanchard of Copy Lane CID, said: “This was a very upsetting incident for the three people who were working there on Friday and although thankfully unhurt, they are still shaken by what happened. "The offenders went into the travel agents within seconds of the last customer leaving so we believe they were probably waiting nearby and therefore may have aroused someone's suspicions. “Chapel Lane would have still been fairly busy at that time with people shutting up shop for the day or going for an early meal or drink so someone out there will have seen something odd or suspicious. I would urge them to cast their minds back to Friday and ask themselves if they saw anyone waiting close to Thomson travel agents, a car repeatedly driving past it at around closing time, or anyone running away from the Chapel Lane area. "No matter how insignificant or trivial such information may seem, it could prove crucial to our investigation and I would urge them to come forward. These types of crime will not be tolerated by the police and were are determined to do all we can to catch those responsible." Call Copy Lane CID on 0151 777 3127 or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111. By Natasha Young   24/02/2010 06:09:00 http://www.champnews.com/html/newsstory.asp?id=8091 The chap leaning out of his milk float said it all. Normally, if someone shouts a couple of words at you which can't be repeated in a family newspaper, you'd be within your rights to feel a bit offended, but for a change I could see where he was coming from. This was Lord Street on a bright weekday morning, and I was walking down it wearing pyjamas. I have felt less conspicuous. It seemed like such a good idea in The Champion office last Friday. There's been a lot of talk lately about whether it's right to wander into your favourite shop wearing nothing more than your nightwear, and as the only one of us who actually admitted to having done it before, I took on the challenge of trying it out for an entire day. It is, after all, only nightwear! But lots of you don't agree, and reckon people putting on PJs for the trip to the shop is about as sensible as going to bed in your best suit. “They aren't setting a good example to their children, as now their children are doing the same thing. When I see these young women they are making us know they are on the dole, lazy and unkempt, why can't they get dressed and look smart, as visitors to Litherland think this is terrible,” said Litherland resident Marie Williams, after complaining of female residents wearing pyjamas during the daytime. “You don't see men walking around in their pyjamas, so have have a bit of respect.” Actually, you do now, although I suspect this is only because no woman in our office is foolish enough to try walking through Southport town centre wearing long jimjams, slippers and a dressing gown. I'll happily admit that at 3am, I have been to branches of Tesco before, usually to pick up essentials on a five minute dash because nothing else is open. I'd like to say strolling into a supermarket at 10:30am in the morning is a completely different kettle of fish, but I can't. The staff wouldn't let me in. What's worse is that our Champion photographer insisted on heading off in front so he could turn around and catch me walking past stunned shoppers, but this meant lots of loitering around looking very suspicious. This wasn't shopping made easier. This was looking like I'd escaped from somewhere and had arrived in an alien world, completely confused and out of place. The point I was trying to prove is that it's a free country and if you want to go shopping in your pyjamas, there's nothing stopping you. I'll carry on nipping timidly into late night stores in my nightwear if the emergency calls for it. But I can only conclude one thing from doing it for an entire day, when you've got an entire wardrobe's worth of gear to wear. Why would you? It's a stupid thing way to spend the day wandering around, but if you're proud to parade around in pyjamas, I'm not going to stop you. I suspect I may get some abuse for this... By David Simister   24/02/2010 05:49:00 http://www.champnews.com/html/newsstory.asp?id=8090 The region's guiding leaders are urging aerial photographers to come to their aid to help pull off a spectacular centenary stunt on Ainsdale Beach this summer. Members of Sefton's guiding community told The Champion on Monday, January 15, 2010, that they are planning to create a giant “100” figure out of 1,000 of their own members as part of their centenary celebrations, but need the help of a skilled aerial photographer to help capture the event when it takes place later this year. “This will be a once in a lifetime event, which will give guides, brownies and leaders alike the chance to celebrate 100 years of guiding with an amazing one-off event,” said Natalie Simmons, leader of the 74th Brownies, based in Kew. “We're looking for an aerial photographer to take pictures of the event, which will see 1,000 brownies and guides arranged into the shape of a number '100' on the beach. It's part of as challenge they're taking part in to help celebrate 100 years of guiding, and doing this will help them gain the maximum number of points and help them complete that challenge.” The guiding movement was first established in 1910 by Scouts founder Robert Baden Powell, who believed that girls' activities should be different from the boys' activities in the Scouting movement, which led to the establishment of the first units. Sefton's branch of the girl guiding movement has decided to celebrate the centenary in a number of ways throughout 2010, and is proposing the beach display as a memorable stunt to help commemorate the anniversary and promote the region. If you think you can help, contact Natalie Simmons on 07590 114539 or go to the Sefton girlguiding website online at www.girlguidingsefton.org.uk. By David Simister 18/02/2010 11:37:00 http://www.champnews.com/html/newsstory.asp?id=8089 Health bosses are promoting awareness of their bowel screening programme as part of national bowel cancer awareness week. Bowel cancer is the second biggest cancer killer in the UK and over the next two years all men and women aged 60 to 69 who are registered with a GP will receive a screening test kit through the post. Dr. Mark Hendrickse, Clinical Director of the Lancashire Screening Programme believes that the kits can save lives. He said: “Screening through the use of the test kit is extremely important and potentially life-saving. ”It is estimated that around 90% of bowel cancer cases could be treated successfully if caught early enough. “Therefore, I would urge people to use their test kit when they receive it it could save your life. ”Research has proven that regular bowel cancer screening can reduce deaths by as much as 16%.“ For further information on the campaign dubbed be loud be clear call 020 8973 0019.   17/02/2010 07:22:00 http://www.champnews.com/html/newsstory.asp?id=8084 A former school teacher and choir master, who had sex with a 15-year-old girl and sexually molested a younger girl, has been jailed for three years and four months. Andrew Hunter, of Rosemary Lane in Formby, was told by a judge: “This was a repeated course of conduct involving two girls. It cannot be regarded as impulsive or a momentary lapse, it was a course of conduct over several months. "Girls of this age need mature guidance from adults and you as a teacher should have been particularly aware of that," said Judge John Phipps. The bespectacled 27-year-old bachelor, who has since become engaged to another young woman, showed no emotion as he was led to the cells last Friday (February 12, 2010). Liverpool Crown Court heard that Hunter was a teacher at South Wirral High and a choir master at St Mary's Church, Walton, at the time of the offences but the victims were not pupils nor in the church choir. Anya Horwood, prosecuting, said that the mother of the 14-year-old victim had been worried that Hunter was over attentive to her daughter and knew that some girls in the church choir "were in awe of him, fluttering their eye lashes at him." In January 2008 she found her daughter using her messaging service on her computer and saw a message from Hunter asking if she still had ”a crush“ on him. Her mother told her to reply that he was too old and asked if anything had happened between them and the girl said not. Later in the year the girl went to Derbyshire with her friend, the 15-year-old victim and that girl's parents. Hunter turned up by arrangement to collect them and that night got under a duvet with both girls and sexually molested the younger child, said Miss Horwood. The following month her mother saw another MSN message from him referring to the incident and telling her how to delete messages and she confronted her daughter, who confessed what had happened. She told police and the other girl was interviewed but she said nothing had happened between either of them and Hunter. But police arrested Hunter on July 11 and when his computer was seized indecent thumb nail photographs were found, including one clearly of the 15-year-old. That girl was re-interviewed and she said she had not been honest before because she was scared of Hunter. She told how they had had sexual intercourse three times at her home and once at his home. Her parents had allowed her to call at his home because he shared it with a police officer, said Miss Horwood. Keiran Fielding, defending, said that Hunter, who has no previous convictions, did not have a general attraction or propensity for sexual activity with children. The relationship developed with the older girl after she became ”his sounding board and confidante“ because of his financial and personal difficulties. "By his actions he has destroyed his own career. He has brought shame on himself and his family." He was suspended from teaching after the offences came to light and knows he will be unable to work with children again, added Mr Fielding. Judge Phipps ordered Hunter to sign on the Sex Offenders Register for life and imposed an indefinite Sexual Offences Prevention Order which bans from from being alone with children. He must also register any computer and phone with a camera and internet access with the police. Hunter pleaded guilty to sexual activity with the 14-year-old, four similar offences involving the other victim, inciting her to engage in sexual activity and possessing ten indecent photographs. The offences took place between December 1, 2007 and May 30, 2008.  By Lynda Roughley 17/02/2010 06:32:00 http://www.champnews.com/html/newsstory.asp?id=8083 Merseyside Police have been forced to ground their latest high-tech gadget after it was revealed it was against the law to use it without a licence. The flying CCTV drone, which recently triumphed the force with their first UK arrest in Litherland, will now be investigated by the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA). Since January 1, 2010, new rules were introduced stating that the CAA needs to be consulted over any use of the drones that can fly up to 400ft and reach speeds of 30mph. A CAA spokesperson said any breach in regulations would be “treated seriously”. The drone was used recently in Litherland to assist police in thick fog to trace a man who had run from a stolen car and headed towards the Leeds to Liverpool Canal. The man, along with another man, was the first to be arrested by Merseyside Police using the new device. A Merseyside Police spokesperson said: "Over the past year Merseyside Police has engaged with the CAA, as part of the unmanned aerial systems working group, to ensure that the Force's use of its Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) complies with current and anticipated CAA regulations. "The CAA introduced new statutory regulations on 1 January 2010 which requires all UAVs to be licensed by the CAA before use. Since the Force has known of the change in regulations all UAV flights have been suspended and will remain so until the appropriate license has been granted. "The Force has written to the CAA to invite them to visit the Force and inspect the UAV and operating procedures with a view to securing the required license at the earliest opportunity. "The UAV is used to support existing search resources such as the helicopter and dog patrols. Its temporary unavailability will not affect the Force's ability to deal with any situations that may arise." The military-designed equipment is directed through a remote control, which is used by an officer on the ground. The police force has had the drone since November and has said it could be used for a range of uses, from hostage situations to monitoring large public events. By Rebecca Keegan   17/02/2010 06:29:00 http://www.champnews.com/html/newsstory.asp?id=8075 Labour MP Claire Curtis-Thomas has payed back nearly £200 of the expenses she claimed, Sir Thomas Legg's Additional Costs Allowance (ACA) report revealed. The Labour MP was paid £191.12 in 2008-09 for expenses “related to mobile phones and computers”. Ms Curtis-Thomas has repayed the money since April 2009 as the claims were “not allowable under the ACA, although they could be claimed under the Incidental Expenses Provision”, and has not been asked to make any other repaymants. Meanwhile, Labour MP George Howarth avoided any requests for expenses repayments. Mr Howarth, whose Knowsley North and Sefton East constituency includes Aintree and Maghull, had “no issues” with his expense claims. Sir Thomas Legg was appointed last June to carry out an audit of MPs expenses. Within the anticipated report he said: “I submit this report in the hope that it will contribute to restoring full public confidence in Members of Parliament, thus enabling the House of Commons to move forward with confidence in its vital role as the democratically-elected and leading branch of our national legislature.” Sir Legg went on to describe the ACA system as “deeply flawed” with “vague” rules. Golden handshake But Claire Curtis-Thomas is set to receive a £43,000 'golden handshake' out of taxpayers funds. Out of the 73 MPs standing down after the election after being told to return expenses, all bar-one will be left in credit. Retiring MPs are allowed three main benefits, a 'resettlement grant' with a maximum of £64,766, a standard 'parachute' grant of £40,799 to pay off staff, as well as a £19,000-a-year pension. Despite the expenses scandal the total amount claimed for the retiring MPs amounts to around £30 million.     10/02/2010 12:34:00 http://www.champnews.com/html/newsstory.asp?id=8068 Formby is running the risk of becoming a ghost town after a series of shop closures, traders based there have said this week. Following our story last week on Brows Lane News, which shut its doors under mystery circumstances, several shop owners based in the village have said that high rental costs and business rates are driving many businesses away, despite ongoing efforts to encourage residents to shop locally. “As a local trader within the village I wanted to voice my concerns that the village is slowly becomming a ghost town. I think Formby will eventually end up as a village of charity shops and estate agents,” said Anne Buchanan of The Beauty Lounge, based on Furness Avenue. “I know that other traders in the village feel the same way as I do and it was full topic of conversation in the salon about the newsagents closing. We are telling people to shop local but eventually there will be no shops open the way things are going.” Mrs Buchanan told The Champion that despite ongoing efforts to encourage Formby residents to shop locally more and more small businesses were being driven out of the village, particularly due to increasing costs of paying rental and business rates on their premises. “Sadly there is a real risk of Formby going this way because it's losing more and more of its shops, despite everyone's hard work in trying to be positive about it,” said Tony Higginson of Pritchards book shop, based on Brows Lane. “A lot of businesses are just moving out of the area altogether, but the message to put out is that there's lots going on in Formby and that it is worth coming in to shop locally.” Ravenmeols ward councillor Barry Griffiths said that the issue has been brought up by Sefton Council at its Formby Area Committee meetings, but stressed that while Sefton Council collects business rates from traders, the amounts are set by central Government rather than at a local level. “We've had eight shops close in a very short time, because the rental and business rates are so high, but if you go anywhere in the country it's the same story. I've seen increases in costs of much as 60%, and in a recession this is totally unacceptable,” he said. “You'd have to trade very smartly to make a profit, and in these circumstances a lot of traders have just stopped and left altogether. I am absolutely horrified to see these increases in the current economic climate.”   10/02/2010 11:17:00 http://www.champnews.com/html/newsstory.asp?id=8065 Imagine walking past Sefton Park or Botanic Gardens and instead of seeing fields of lush greenery, birds and butterflies, you came across a car park, a supermarket and more plain houses. Or if you drove through the farms in Burscough and Ormskirk and instead of passing cows, trees and fields of corn, you stumbled upon ASBO teens, a power plant and an industrial estate. Well these are the kinds of scenarios that are being presented if it wasn't for the Campaign for the Protection of Rural England (CPRE) who have fought to protect the countryside for the last 84 years. The Champion can reveal for the first time the Green Belt areas in which we cover. The CPRE work behind the scenes to put a halt to any planning application that tries to build in an area's designated Green Belts. So what is a green belt? A Green Belt is an area that is created to protect countryside or undeveloped land from urban exploration. The North West contains more Green Belt areas than any other area in England and makes up 10% of all the country's parks. And the first major survey into the benefits of Green Belts was published this week alongside a diagram that shows their breakdown outside urban areas. The secretary for the newly-formed Sefton District Group of the CPRE, Nick Thompson of Waterloo said: “Around 30 years ago the Government passed a legislation to protect Green Belt land around Merseyside and to restrict the expansion of homes and businesses into the areas. ”A Green Belt is basically just a restriction in planning law and our aim is to make sure that every building that gets approved doesn't damage the environment in any way, shape or form. “For example we would oppose plans to build a block of flats in an open field to make sure that we protect the environment and the countryside in every way possible. ”We have also made constructive comments on a number of essential developments inside the Green Belt in the Sefton area. “They are essential to protecting parts of the environment which we care for and enjoy.” Survey results When asked what Green Belt activities they would like to undertake in the next year, people in the North West most commonly chose visiting the land on a day out or to get peace and quiet and were keen to see more nature reserves, more woodland walks and more new parks. By containing urban sprawl, the Green Belt has been a success story of post-war planning and if managed effectively it can also help tackle climate change, support wildlife and provide health and leisure opportunities for local residents to enjoy. Numbers facts 28,038 hectares of grade 1 land in the North West (highest in England) 79% of people in the North West would rather buy food produced in a Green Belt than produced elsewhere 6,251 is the number of square miles of Green Belt in England. 30 million people live in or next to Green Belts 13% of England's land surface is covered by Green Belts 100 acres of US farmland is lost to developers per hour 03/02/2010 10:09:00 http://www.champnews.com/html/newsstory.asp?id=8063 Southport residents share just two standby doctors for out of hours care with 280,000 other people in Sefton. The alarming statistics also show that last month Sefton's doctors agreed to only 17% of home visits, The Champion can reveal. The out of hours services are available to patients that need to see their GP urgently at night, on bank holidays or at weekends. GPs are based at Formby overnight but they will travel to either Litherland Town Hall Health Centre or to Southport Out-of-Hours Centre to meet a patient for a consultation, if necessary. The statistics are revealed for the first time as Health Secretary Andy Burnham admitted that the out of hours care is 'unacceptable' in many areas. A new contract came into force in 2004 which allowed GPs to opt out of organising out of hours care passing on the responsibility to their Primary Care Trust (PCT). But now a new report by the PCT has lifted the lid on the problematic out of hours situation, showing enormous variations across the country. The study shows that many PCTs are failing to act quickly enough to urgent cases. While Government targets say a GP should visit or at least ring up within 20 minutes all patients whose cases are designated urgent, out of 84 PCTs in the survey, just two met this target. In terms of the minimum number of out of hours GPs on duty, NHS Sefton fares slightly better than the national average of 142,000 with 140,000 people for each GP outside office hours. Nationally, the number of patients receiving home visits varies from 25 per cent in one PCT to 2 per cent in another, compared to 17% for Sefton last January. Liz Melia, Assistant Director of Primary and Urgent Carefor NHS Sefton Community Health Services, said: “Call levels vary but usually number between five and 10, which includes telephone advice calls or requests for home visits. "We have two out-of-hours GPs on duty each night as well as a paid stand-by. The provision is based on requirements to meet high quality standards and the needs of the local population. "The service is reviewed regularly to ensure it is working well. "Sometimes the GP asks the patient to come to the health centre if it is felt it would be better to have access to equipment within the consultation room, providing the patient can travel to the site. “If the patient cannot travel and needs to be seen then the GP will make a home visit. "Using January 2010 as a basis, approximately 17% of calls overnight resulted in a home visit. This increased to 32% when including visits by the patients to see a GP at one of our three bases." By David Raven   03/02/2010 07:11:00 http://www.champnews.com/html/newsstory.asp?id=8060 Hundreds of residents braved the cold winds at Formby Football Club last week, to mark the 1,000th day of the search for missing Madeleine McCann. With the aim of releasing 250 lanterns into the sky, the event was one of four that took place simultaneously across the country. Other locations included London, Scotland and Madeleine's hometown of Rothley in Leicestershire.  Schoolchildren, churches, and Formby FC members attended the event, alongside residents and friends and local relatives of the McCanns. There was also a singing performance and a prayer reading at the ceremony. A Formby FC spokesperson told The Champion: “It went really well and everyone was there for the right reasons. Formby FC is at the centre of the community and it was really fitting to be holding the event here.” Local councillor Barry Griffiths, who was also present at the event, added: “People were very respectful and we felt priviledged to be having the event here. "Residents did us proud and stood out in the bitterly cold weather." Madeleine's parents, Gerry and Liverpool-born Kate McCann, were not present at the event as they were hosting a fundraising evening in London to help keep their campaign in the public eye. By Natasha Young 03/02/2010 06:52:00 http://www.champnews.com/html/newsstory.asp?id=8046 Formby will tonight (Wednesday, January 27, 2010) be one of four UK locations to mark the 1,000th day since Madeleine McCann went missing from a Portugese holiday resort in May 2007. Madeleine was three-years-old when she disappeared during a family holiday and her parents, Gerry and Liverpool-born Kate McCann have since worked tirelessly to keep the search for their daughter in the public eye. Formby Football Club is calling on residents to attend its Altcar Road ground at 7.30pm tonight to see 250 lanterns released into the sky, and help to once again raise the profile of the campaign. During the service, which was only organised at the weekend, some members of the public will get to light the lanterns under the guidance of the club. Formby FC players and local friends of the McCanns are expected to be in attendance, and schools and churches in the area have been notified. Madeleine's parents will not be present as they will be at another event in London. Ravenmeols ward councillor Barry Griffiths, who helped to organise the event, told The Champion: “We want hundreds of people to come down and support this little girl. "It had to be organised in around 24 hours so we've hit the ground running with it, and it just shows how linked into the community Formby FC is." Another 250 lanterns will be released at similar events at Kate and Gerry's hometown of Rothley in Leicestershire, as well in London and Scotland. By Natasha Young 27/01/2010 05:03:00 http://www.champnews.com/html/newsstory.asp?id=8041 It's been a “challenging” first year in office for Sefton Council's chief executive, Margaret Carney. Despite a year of dealing with the affects of the global recession, which has triggered talk of redundancies and the need to save money at the council, Ms Carney remains positive about her experience so far and her hopes for the future. Talking to The Champion, she explained the first year had been about “getting to know things inside better and building relationships, giving me the grounding to move forward”. She added: “I've enjoyed it very much and the warmth I've received has been tremendous.” Born in Merseyside with 30 years of experience in local government at Knowsley, Warrington and Rochdale councils, Ms Carney said she had been particularly enjoying getting to know the borough again and described her tour of all the wards as the “single most important thing” she had done in the past year.  “I got to know Sefton and understand how its elected members work. I got an insight into the council at grassroots level,” she told The Champion. “There was also a number of issues raised that we resolved after the visits.” One particular issue that sprung to mind was the amount of litter at Switch Island. Ms Carney explained the problem wasn't actually Sefton Council's responsibility, however after enquiries were made the Highways Agency resolved the problem within a few days. The chief executive insisted 2009 “had been challenging rather than difficult,” but inevitably the recession had had an impact on the running of the council. She claimed the authority is going into 2010 in a similar financial position and said: “We've made no secret of the need to save and we have made progress over the past three to four months. "We still view compulsory redundancy to be a last resort and we still have a lot of work to do." However, saving hasn't put a stop to the council's plans to move the borough forward with investment and regeneration. "There's investment everywhere across the borough with the Water Centre in Crosby and Southport Arts Centre. "I want to stress that it's not a crisis and we are not shutting up shop. We still have services to provide but we need to prioritise." Ms Carney explained that Southport's Cultural Centre development will be “fantastic” for the region as well as the town, and added: "We should invest where the outcome will be bigger, it's just got to be affordable." With the future of the borough in mind, Ms Carney hopes to focus 2010 on making sure major projects like the Water Centre, the Cultural Centre and the Building Schools for the Future plans "really deliver", while ensuring the council is prepared for a possible change of government as we approach the general election.  By Natasha Young   22/01/2010 05:47:00 http://www.champnews.com/html/newsstory.asp?id=8035 Suspected cases of the winter vomiting bug, norovirus, are causing disruption at Southport hospital and have caused the closure of one ward and forced restrictions on three others. One ward at Southport hospital is closed to new admissions and discharges and three others have been affected. Last weekend more than 140 wards at hospitals across the country were closed in an attempt to contain norovirus that was reported to have claimed up to 500,000 victims. Norovirus brings on nausea and projectile vomiting. A spokesman for Southport and Ormskirk Hospital NHS Trust said: "The Trust has one ward closed at Southport hospital to new admissions and discharges, while three other wards at the same hospital have bays with restrictions on as precautionary measures following suspected norovirus cases. "None of these cases have been confirmed as the virus at the present time. "When a ward is closed we don't take new patients or discharge patients from the ward until the last person has been clear of diarrhoea and vomiting for 48 hours." There was an increase in norovirus cases last November and there is now believed to be a second stage. Throughout January last year there were 46 ward closures in the country for norovirus, although last weekend at least 141 were shut in England. The norovirus bug is another problem for NHS trusts who faced disruption during the Big Freeze. But the Department of Health has said: "Norovirus is not new, it is not a 'superbug' and the vast majority of people recover with no long-term effects. "The NHS deals effectively with norovirus outbreaks all year round and this year is no different." 21/01/2010 10:37:00 http://www.champnews.com/html/newsstory.asp?id=8033 A school teacher from Formby accused of sexually molesting two young girls and possessing child porn appeared at Liverpool Crown Court yesterday (Tuesday, January 19, 2010). Andrew Hunter, a teacher at South Wirral High and a choir master at St Mary's Church, Walton, was due for sentence but a pre-sentence report was not ready. Hunter, 27, has pleaded guilty at an earlier court hearing to six sex offences and one of possessing 10 indecent photographs of children. He has admitted sexual activity with a 14-year-old girl on May 30, 2008 and four similar offences involving a 15-year-old girl between December 1, 2007 and April 30, 2008. Hunter, of Rosemary Lane, Formby, has also pleaded guilty to inciting the 15-year-old to engage in sexual activity between October 1 and November 30, 2007. He has denied inciting the younger girl to engage in sexual activity and two charges of engaging in sexual activity in the presence of the other youngster via a webcam and these are to be dropped. Judge John Phipps said he accepted that it was no fault of Hunter's that the pre-sentence report had not been prepared and he further remanded him on bail until February 12. “All sentencing options will be open,” he warned him. Hunter is already subject to an interim Sex Offenders Register order. By Lynda Roughley     20/01/2010 12:00:00 http://www.champnews.com/html/newsstory.asp?id=8019 A serial conman who masqueraded as a doctor and a vet to carry out a string of frauds has been jailed for two years. Russell Oakes, 43, tricked dozens of trusting people over three years into believing he was both a trained GP and a qualified vet to con them out of thousands of pounds. His web of lies meant he was paid to carry out a near-fatal castration of a pony, diagnose a five-year-old child with serious, non-existent allergies and even conduct an internal examination on a 17-year-old girl. Jailing him, Judge David Swift said, “These people trusted you, they relied on you. They were all misled by your deliberate deception. "You purported to be a professional, qualified person, people entrusted their animals and, in some instance, themselves to you." Liverpool Crown Court heard that Oakes's scam started more than four years ago when he was working legitimately as an osteopath. Henry Riding, prosecuting, told how Oakes began to tell his customers he was a trained GP, but had chosen to go into alternative medicine !rather than sit behind a desk". "He was not and never has been registered with the General Medical Council as a doctor. He was not entitled to practise or pass himself off as a medical doctor," said Mr Riding. One patient who was tricked was Sally Greenwood, the owner of a reputable equine centre in Formby, whom he persuaded he was going to train to become a vet. Mr Riding told how the trickster even went through the pretence of going to university and taking exams to maintain his lies. After "graduating" from his course, Ms Greenwood allowed him to set up a clinic at her Warren Farm centre, where he treated her own animals and those using her stables. His lies were maintained with fake degrees and references he had bought on-line to secure registration with the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons (RCVS). It was from the Warren Farm equine centre that he carried out bogus work, such as giving flu and tetanus vaccinations to the horses and even treating a dog and some hens. But his frauds eventually came to light after equine centre regular Tina Greenwood asked Oakes to castrate two of her ponies. Oakes's botched job on four-year-old Roo almost proved fatal and the Welsh pony only survived after genuine vet Seamus Miller was called in to save his life. Mr Riding told how Mr Miller was already suspicious of Oakes' work and he turned detective by contacting the RCVS. They initially confirmed he was registered, but when Mr Miller asked them to check his documentation they discovered his certificate was bogus. Mr Riding told how it was only after Oakes arrest that a 17-year-old woman came forward revealing Oakes had carried out an intimate examination of her under his guise as a doctor after she fell from her horse. An investigation revealed Oakes had carried out a string of work pretending to be a doctor, including ordering unnecessary blood tests and diagnosing a five-year-old boy with a non-existent allergy. The child lost more than a stone in weight in a year and had to go to hospital. Inquiries also revealed how Oakes had appealed against speeding tickets for himself and his partner Joanne Conroy by claiming medical emergencies. Oakes, of Shore Road, Hesketh Bank, near Southport, pleaded guilty to 41 counts, four of obtaining services by deception, one of forgery, one of using a false instrument, 33 counts of fraud and two of perverting the course of justice. Defence barrister, Christopher Stables, said Oakes, who used to lecture osteopathy at Oxford Brookes university, had been motivated by his "desire to help alleviate pain for animals and their owners". By Lynda Roughley 13/01/2010 08:47:00 http://www.champnews.com/html/newsstory.asp?id=8018 Refuse and recycling services have been suspended across Sefton due to the poor weather. Only a few Green Bee recycling collections were made on Tuesday, January 5 2010, as most of the wagons were unable to leave the depot in Kirkby. Some collections took place in Bootle and Litherland. Unfortunately this service has now been temporarily suspended.   Grey bin collections have also been severely disrupted with many areas missed on January 5, due to the weather conditions and the early closure of tipping facilities.   The disposal sites at Foul Lane and Gilmoss were also closed on that day, as they were full due to problems with transporting waste to landfill sites.   In conjunction with our contractors, it has been decided that no catch up refuse or recycling collections will take place. Residents are asked to be patient and understanding and if they do not receive a collection this week to put out their grey wheelie bins and Green Bee recycling boxes on their normal day next week.   If weather conditions improve, grey wheelie bin collections will take place as per the normal scheduled day.   At their next collection, residents will be able to place out one additional bag of non-recyclable waste alongside their grey wheelie bin for collection. Any excess recyclable materials should be presented in carrier bags alongside the green box.   Assistant Environmental Protection director, Jim Black, said: "Due to the severe weather and the related health and safety issues for collection and waste disposal, refuse and recycling collections have been severely disrupted.   "We are very sorry about this and would ask residents to be patient and understanding.   "Conditions will continually be assessed, and where it is deemed safe to send crews out, they will concentrate on the scheduled collections for that day, subject to the availability of tipping sites.   "Any missed collections will not be picked up until the next scheduled collection day which will now be next week. We would like to reassure residents that we will get back to normal service as soon as we can." 06/01/2010 09:42:00 http://www.champnews.com/html/newsstory.asp?id=8016 A return of heavy snowfall brought chaos to Sefton today (Tuesday, January 5 2010), causing closures and travel problems across the borough. Many schools and colleges were regularly monitoring the weather conditions, with some taking the decision to close for the day. Southport's KGV College has closed to avoid travel problems for students on their way home, and Southport College also sent students home for the day. A spokesman for the Southport College said students and staff are advised to keep checking the website for updates, and evening classes are suspended for the week. Tarleton High Schools headteacher Tony Hardiker said the weather had deteriorated once the children had arrived at the school, so pupils remained in lessons during the morning. “We're reviewing the situation on an hourly basis. We're in contact with parents and we will make the right decision for the health and safety of the pupils,” he added. Aintree Davenhill Primary School remained closed yesterday due to plumbing problems with a burst pipe that first occured on Monday (January 4). Meanwhile, some outpatient clinics at Southport and Formby District General Hospital were cancelled yesterday morning, and all were closed throughout the afternoon. A spokesman for the hospital could not give any details of plans for the rest of the week, however residents wanting to checkany clinic details can call the hospital on 01704 547471. Sefton Council reassured residents across the borough that there was enough grit to cope with the conditions. A spokesperson told The Champion: “We have enough grit and we are constantly monitoring the situation at the moment. The gritters went out across the borough three times last night (Monday) and once this morning (Tuesday).” Despite gritters being operated, Merseytravel has still reported some bus cancellations in the area as decisions were being made on a route by route basis, but trains were running as normal. Motorists are being advised by Merseyside Police to drive with extreme caution and avoid making unnecessary journeys through the snow and icy weather. North West Ambulance Service has also urged residents with minor injuries or symptoms to contact NHS Direct on 0845 46 47 as 999 calls are being stringently prioritised to use resources in life-threatening cases only. By Natasha Young     05/01/2010 08:58:00