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Flight
stewardess sentenced for smuggling cigarettes
A Liverpudlian flight
stewardess based in Dubai has been sentenced for attempting to
smuggle cigarettes into the UK through Manchester Airport.
Aleshia Middleton (24) from Childwall was arrested on 24 November
2012 by Border Force officers when she attempted to pass through the
Customs Green Channel at Manchester Airport as a passenger with
4,871 duty-free cigarettes after arriving on a flight from Dubai. HM
Revenue & Customs (HMRC) investigators interviewed her and she was
charged with duty evasion offences.
Mike O'Grady Assistant Director Criminal Investigation, HMRC said:-
"Middleton abused her position of trust as an airline
employee, she has admitted in interview that she chose not to heed
the rules because she was trying to save money for her imminent
wedding. There are no excuses for smuggling whatever your status.
Tobacco fraud costs honest taxpayers more than £2bn a year,
undercutting honest businesses, and drawing people into wider
criminality. Anyone with information about illicit tobacco sales or
smuggling should contact the Customs' Hotline on 0800 59 5000."
Middleton admitted that the cigarettes were not UK duty paid and
that she was attempting to evade £1,338 in excise duty. She had
travelled to Dubai as aircrew and returned back to the UK as a
passenger the next day.
Carbon cuts pay
off
A plan which supports
hundreds of millions of pounds of investment while helping cut
carbon emissions had been agreed.
The Sustainable Energy Action Plan, (SEAP) which has been endorsed
by the city council's cabinet, brings together low carbon programmes
throughout the City Region
Liverpool has signed up to the EU Covenant of Mayors under which it
has agreed to go beyond the target of reducing carbon emissions of
20% by 2020.
A key element of the Covenant is the SEAP which sets out priorities
for Liverpool and the wider city region to enable it to reach its
target for carbon reductions.
As part of the SEAP a basic emission inventory was carried out to
establish the current position. This shows that between 2005 and
2008 Carbon dioxide emission fell in the city region by 12%, from
10,004 tonnes to 8,797 tonnes. "These are very encouraging figures and they demonstrate
clearly how we are working toward meeting and exceeding targets.
However, we still want to drive forward the
sustainable energy agenda.
The SEAP is an important element in this and the work to date has
been achieved by councils and the private sector working together to
develop low carbon solutions
It will support the preparation of bids which have the potential to
see between £200 and £500 million invested in the region. They will
help make us a more resilient and greener city.
The priorities for Liverpool are projects that reduce carbon
emissions for housing properties and those which help develop local
heat and power generation and local supply networks, such as the
Eldonian Village's dual fuel energy centre."
said Councillor Tim Moore, cabinet member for transport and climate
change.
Southport Weekender has Barely 100 places left! Last chance to
book...!!!
THE Southport
Weekender event has just 100
places left for the 2013 Weekender since going on sale back in
September... Sadly for us in
Southport it is still in Butlin's Holiday Resort in Minehead, but it
is hoped that the 50th will have a stronger Southport connection,
other than just the name. But DO NOT let the fact it is
now in Minehead put your off, as this is am amazing holiday, and
still an amazing show to visit!!! take a look at our coverage from
2011 for example! Sadly we
missed it in 2012, and our Editor, Patrick was not happy about it,
it is so good in 2011! The event organisers Dave and Alix told
us that:- "What can we say about the response to our line up
last week? Thank you for all of your messages, it's safe to say that
this Weekender is on course to be the best yet! We've never known
such a reaction to an announcement before, and we're delighted that
the new names we are introducing alongside the Southport legends
have caused as much excitement for you as they have done for us! And
the great news is, we haven't even announced the live acts yet!
We've started to confirm the performers who will help make this
Weekender go down in history, so if you are still hoping to join us
for this internationally acclaimed annual event then we urge you to
book up now with your £50 deposit to avoid missing out. We are down
to the last 100 tickets and we fully expect these to sell out in the
next week. Tickets are on sale here. Our last day in the office will
be Friday, (lunchtime), 21 December 2012. Before we go, we'd like to
say a massive thank you again for all your fantastic letters of
support following our announcement, and, as always, we will be back
in the New Year with more exciting news! We would like to wish all
of you a marvellous Christmas and a soulful New Year! Thank you for
making this year our most memorable yet with a sell out 25th
anniversary party, and the most exciting SuncéBeat party to date. On
that note, tickets for SuncéBeat 4 are on sale now here, perhaps the
perfect present for the music-lover in your life! Check out the
latest batch of recordings from this year's gathering, with new sets
uploaded from DJ LeFto, Ronnie Herel, Steve Butler and Marc Rowlands.
Last, but not least, don't get up to any mischief! In fact we'll
rephrase that, make sure you do as you're only young once; or in our
case forever." So do not miss what will be a fantastic
line
up for 2013 and get your tickets now, before it is to late! |
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City gears up
for new cycle hire scheme
LIVERPOOL city centre is
about to get rolling, under plans to launch the biggest cycle hire
scheme in the UK, outside London.
The city council is putting forward proposals to launch the
Liverpool City Cycle Hire Scheme from next summer. It will give a
range of people; from commuters and shoppers, to tourists and
students; the opportunity to hop on a bike to travel through the
heart of the city.
Liverpool City Council has been awarded £2.8m in Local Sustainable
Transport Funding (LSTF) from the Department for Transport (DfT);
administered through Merseytravel. The fund aims to reduce the
number of journeys made by car, promote sustainable transport, and
reduce congestion and greenhouse gas emissions. It also aims to
enhance access to employment and other essential services and
improve journey time and reliability.
The city council plans to use £1.5 million of the funding to deliver
the cycle hire scheme, which would see 1,000 cycles being made
available for hire, at 60 stations, primarily in the city centre.
The 'self-service' operation would run 24-hour-hours-a-day,
seven-days-a-week, with cyclists able to pay using their mobile
phone or cash card and even receive the first half-hour for free.
Plans are also being put forward to make a number of electric-assist
bikes available for hire, as well as points for charging low-carbon
vehicles; further boosting the cycle hire stations' credentials as
green travel facilities.
It is hoped the scheme will help the city centre respond to
increases in the number of residents, visitors and employees, and
tackle climate change challenges by providing increased sustainable
travel options around the city.
Mayor of Liverpool Joe Anderson, said:- "This is an exciting
project, which would put Liverpool at the forefront of building
sustainable transport into everyday city life. With the major
increases in the numbers of people living, working and visiting the
city centre, we believe the time is right to introduce a cycle hire
scheme, to reduce reliance on the car and to offer a low carbon, low
cost, healthier way to get around Liverpool. Whether it's for the
last mile of the journey to and from the office, to travel across
town to attend meetings, to get to university lectures, or to visit
shops and tourist attractions, we think this initiative could bring
huge benefits to a wide range of people."
The city council's Cabinet Member for Transport, Councillor Tim
Moore, said:- "Liverpool has a low level of bicycle ownership,
but recent figures from our Local Transport Plan show that cycling
is on the up in this city – so we know there's an appetite for it.
We hope this scheme will help further widen the appeal and
accessibility of cycling for local people. If we want to reduce
congestion and pollution, we need to find creative ways to limit the
growth of car journeys and promote sustainable transport. A cycle
hire scheme is a great way of doing that. And we hope it will help
drive up the health and fitness of many more local people by
encouraging them to hop on a bike for all their trips around the
city."
The scheme supports the Decade of Health and Wellbeing, launched in
2010, which aims to help people stay healthy and feel good, both
physically and mentally.
It is expected that the cycle hire scheme will quickly expand to
become a long term facility for employees, residents and visitors.
Following the initial investment, the council hopes the scheme will
become financially sustainable after 3 years.
The city council would seek to appoint a high quality cycle hire
operator to take the project forward in terms of set up, marketing
and operation.
Initial discussions have also been held with major employers in the
city centre, who see the plans as a benefit to be promoted as part
of their travel plans. The council hopes to establish links with key
tourism, sites, educational institutions and major city centre
employers over the cycle hire scheme.
Councillor Liam Robinson, Chair of Merseytravel, said:- "This
project will make a significant contribution to the sustainable
transport offer to visitors and residents of Merseyside and supports
the objectives of the Local Transport Plan and the Active Travel
Strategy. It is a fantastic initiative and alongside the many other LSTF
projects being delivered in Merseyside, it will also help to improve
access to jobs and training."
As well as the cycle hire scheme, Liverpool will also be using the
funding to invest in a number of cycling and signalling
infrastructure improvements, and sustainable transport initiatives
in different parts of the city.
It is expected that the Liverpool City Cycle Hire Scheme will be
launched with 300 bikes in the city centre in the summer of 2013 and
then expanded over the next 18 months to a total of 1,000 bikes.
Stations will be located in the city centre, before being extended
to outlying suburbs.
New figures released in the 2011 to 2012 LTP3 Merseyside cycle
monitoring report shows that there has been a 20% increase in the
number of journeys made by bicycle in Liverpool over the past year.
It means the city is already exceeding the target of 12% set for
2011 to 2015 in the 3rd Local Transport Plan for Merseyside
(LTP3).
The Liverpool City Cycle Hire Scheme proposals will be considered by
the city council's Mayoral Cabinet on Friday, 21 December 2012.
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