Wednesday 16th October

Wednesday, 16 October 2024 06:00

By Steve Haigh

Somerset Council is asking businesses to package products using only recyclable plastic. Yeovil MP Adam Dance is calling for the NHS to be made a top priority in the upcoming Budget. A Langport woman was left in shock after finding a dead cockroach in a parcel delivered to her home containing clothing that she bought online...and more

Somerset Council is asking businesses to package products using only recyclable plastic. It follows an investigation which found that incinerating rubbish can be as polluting as burning coal. Somerset Council uses an incinerator at Avonmouth to dispose of black bin bags. Director for Climate and Place at the Council, Mickey Green, has defended the process claiming incineration can be beneficial.

Yeovil MP Adam Dance is calling for the NHS to be made a top priority in the upcoming Budget. His comments follow figure showing that Somerset NHS Foundation Trust, who run Yeovil Hospital, failed to meet its cancer treatment targets in August. Mr Dance MP blames years of underfunding of the NHS and is urging the Chancellor to prioritise NHS services in the Budget later this month.

A Planning Inspector has over-turned a decision not to allow a new housing development at Oakhill near Shepton Mallet. At a meeting in February, Somerset Council rejected plans to build 23 new homes on land at Chapelfield in Oakhill. But following an appeal, a Planning Inspector has ruled Johnson Land Ltd can go ahead with the development.

Langport woman, Amy Jowett, was left in shock after finding a dead cockroach in a parcel delivered to her home that contained clothing she has bought online. The incident comes a week after a live Scorpian was found in a package delivered by the same retailer to an address in Bristol.

Somerset Council says it received just over four thousand complaints in the year 2023/24. 1300 of them were later withdrawn, leaving 2700 to be investigated. The majority were about planning issues and delays getting phone calls answered.
Bruton-based cheese makers, Wyke Farms, have been recognized for their environmental credentials at a national competition. The business was given the Environmental Leadership prize at the UK Food and Drink Industry Awards for creating a sustainable working farm where the electricity and gas is self-sourced from biogas and solar.

More from News

Friday 13th March

The first of the new medium lift helicopters being built by Leonardo in Yeovil for the RAF will be delivered in 2031. Somerset Council has launched a public consultation on planned new charges at its two hundred public car parks. More women in Somerset are said to be taking up walking football... and more
Thursday 12th March

A Yeovil headteacher says he’s concerned about plans to stop giving school holiday food vouchers to families on low incomes. The owner of Yeovil Town is calling on fans to be patient as he continues his overhaul of the National League side. A high voltage fault is being blamed for plunging 1700 homes into darkness in the Ilminster area... and more
Wednesday 11th March

Plans have been submitted to convert two properties in Yeovil into houses of multiple occupation. A new court date has been announced for a Yeovil man charged with attempted murder. An engineer who has worked at the Leonardo factory in Yeovil for 40-years has won a top industry award... and more
Tuesday 10th March

Police say a fire at the former Oscar Mayer food factory in Chard was started deliberately. Yeovil College says it would have been adversely affected had Leonardo not won the contract to build new medium-lift helicopters. A seven-foot dragon will be visiting towns and villages in our area during the next few weeks to promote Somerset Day... and more
Monday 9th March

Two Wildcat helicopters from 815 Squadron at RNAS Yeovilton have arrived in Cyprus to help protect RAF Akrotiri from further Iranian drone strikes. New figures show that 40 people were killed on Avon and Somerset’s roads in the last 12-months. A Somerset man has been recalling the day 60-years ago when he was a passenger on the last train on the Somerset and Dorset Railway... and more
Friday 6th March

Defence Minister Luke Pollard has been explaining why it took the government so long to confirm a contract for the Leonardo in Yeovil to build new medium lift helicopters for the RAF. Police are investigating a break in at a pet shop in Ilminster. Somerset Council is to stop using red ink on council tax reminder letters... and more
Thursday 5th March

Two military helicopters from RNAS Yeovilton are being sent to Cyprus to help bolster UK’s defences amid the US-Israel war with Iran. Yeovil Town Council is seeking legal advice over the closure of the hyper acute stroke unit at Yeovil Hospital. Flood warnings have been lifted on the Somerset Levels... and more
Wednesday 4th March

A man has died in a fire in Wincanton. Somerset Council is planning further cuts of twenty-one million pounds to help balance its books. A campaign to raise £30,000 for a minibus has been launched in Chard... and more