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Somerset Council says it received just over four thousand complaints in the year 2023/24. 1300 of them were later withdrawn, leaving 2700 to be investigated.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

Monday 10th February

A dog, stolen in Norfolk seven years ago, has been found 200 miles away safe and well in Somerset. A man who lives in Seavington St Michael near Ilminster has been jailed after driving a car at police officers. One hundred new affordable homes could be built near Langport...and more
Friday 7th February

A Yeovil man has been fined £1,200 for sending hostile text messages to his ex-wife. A report into the performance of Avon and Somerset Police has found it doesn't answer emergency calls quickly enough. Twenty-two swimmers at the Trident Swimming Club in Chard have won places in this year’s Somerset County Swimming Championships...and more
Thursday 6th February

A man has appeared in court charged with murdering a one-month-old baby boy in Chard. Kingfisher Primary School in Yeovil has been highly praised by Ofsted. Somerset Council says it’s “extremely disappointed” after its bid to form a devolved Wessex group of local councils was rejected by the government...and more.
Wednesday 5th February

The Liberal Democrat Leader of Somerset Council, Councillor Bill Revans, says they had no choice but to ask the government to allow them to lift the 5 percent cap on raising Council Tax. Two teenagers have been released on bail following the stabbing in Yeovil. More than six thousand pounds has been awarded to local groups by Chard Carnival Committee...and more.
Tuesday 4th February

Somerset has been permitted to increase its Council Tax share by 7.5 percent. An Ilminster man, forced out of his house by last week's floods, says he doesn't know when he will be able to return home. Ilminster Literary Festival has launched its annual children’s writing competition, designed to encourage local children to write creative literature...and more.
Monday 3rd February

Five men have appeared in court charged with the murder of a man in Yeovil. A 16-year-old is the second person to be arrested in connection with a stabbing in Yeovil. Yeovil’s new outdoor entertainment space in Lower Middle Street has been officially opened by the town’s MP... and more.
Friday 31st January

A teenager has been arrested following a stabbing in Yeovil. Water bills in Somerset are set to go up on average by £123 from April. Yeovil MP, Adam Dance will officially open Yeovil’s new outdoor performance space later today...and more
Thursday 30th January

Lloyds bank is closing its branch in Chard. A Sherborne man has been jailed after defrauding a Yeovil woman of £40,000. A volunteer group in Chard is urging people to sign up to a flood victims register. A councillor in Shepton Mallet has become the first Reform UK member on Somerset Council... and more