Hello! Weekly news from Bedford, England

BoS leads with an unusual story that prospective county councillor Gary Summerfield found himself the subject of a police investigation when his picture and telephone number were plastered across Peterborough.

Mid Bedfordshire District Council Liberal Democrat Gary Summerfield shares his name with Peterborough City Council's arboricultural officer who has been responsible for tree pollarding in the town in the run up to the nesting season.

The work has proved unpopular with some as pollarding, when trees are cut right back, though necessary, can appear very drastic.

A tree fan took action by fixing a poster on one of the pollarded trees stating 'tree designed by Gary Summerfield' which drew smiles from some of the tree doctor's colleagues.

But when posters appeared a few days later carrying a picture of Mr Summerfield and his mobile and office numbers, the council decided to take action.

The plot thickened when the Peterborough Mr Summerfield spotted the offending articles he realised the mug shot was not him.

It was Mid Beds and would-be county councillor Gary Summerfield who has absolutely nothing to do with trees or Peterborough.

The Borough decides that enough is enough: Untaxed vehicles left cluttering a residential street have finally been removed after numerous public complaints.

Last week residents of Norse Road, Bedford, were delighted when several vehicles were clamped by council officers.

The vehicles on the street included a lorry, vans, a horsebox and several cars.

This week, council officers swooped and towed away all the untaxed and abandoned vehicles.

A council spokesman said:

"In a joint operation with the police and DVLA we have now removed the untaxed and abandoned vehicles in Norse Road.

We take environmental crime very seriously and will continue to monitor the area."

A serial "flasher" who repeatedly exposed himself to women rail passengers has been banned from all Britain's railways.

Ramilla Mull, of Russell Rise, Luton, who was working as a contract cleaner on the railways, has served several prison sentences for flashing since 1980, including two incidents on trains in Bedford.

Jailing him for 12 months, Judge Hirenda De Silva QC, said:

"You indecently exposed yourself to several young women on the London underground causing them obvious distress and alarm.

You have 22 previous convictions for similar conduct. There does not seem to be any alternative other than immediate custody.

You acted in an anti-social manner. I am satisfied your conduct has extended to mainline railways and I will not restrict the order to London underground."

Mulla faces up to five years imprisonment if he breaches the ASBO over the next three years and has to register as a sexual offender for ten years.

Up to 100 jobs are at risk with the announcement that the Marshall Motor Group is to axe its main Bedford premises.

Last year Bedfordshire on Sunday reported rumours that the business, owned by Cambridgeshire based Marshall Group, was to relocate and it was confirmed that bosses were seeking an alternative site.

But this week workers received a management memo confirming that no alternative premises have been found. It read:

"As you may know, for some time now we have been attempting to identify suitable alternative premises to relocate all of our Goldington Road businesses in Bedford.

Unfortunately, we have been unable to find a viable site in the Bedford area that would enable us to relocate these businesses to the one site.

The option to remain at Goldington Road is not viable, even with substantial investment.

We have therefore concluded that this site will have to be closed and the land sold for other purposes."

It adds that the site is expected to close by the end of October and consultations have begun with affected employees.

The power of newts!

The western bypass has been a Bedford dream since before the Second World War.

On the brink of becoming a reality it is stalled again - this time by six-inch long newts.

Developers will have to move great crested newts from the site before work can begin.

They have been discovered in a pond near The Bury, Kempston.

The newts are a protected species and it will cost Bedfordia Developments roughly £100,000 to relocate them.

The developers will need to get a licence from government department Defra to move the newts.

Once that is agreed the newts will have to be fenced in before being caught in traps and relocated to a suitable location, which will also be temporarily fenced in.

A guard will have to be employed to ensure no-one tampers with the fences, an ecologist to remove the newts from their traps and move them to their new homes and English Nature will be on hand to ensure no harm comes to the small reptiles.

The £17 million cost of the western bypass from the A6 to the A421 is to be funded between three developers building more than 2,000 homes to the west of the town.

Mike Stephens, chief executive of Bedfordia Developments, said: "This will slow the development down and cost a fair bit of money but it is important we follow the laid-down procedures."

An English Nature spokesman said: "Great crested newts are internationally protected. They are not rare but the population is declining."

Bedford's international athletic stadium has been judged the best in the country.

Beating off stiff competition from major cities such as Birmingham, London and Cardiff, the borough council-owned venue took the top national facility of the year prize at the inaugural UK Athletics Club Awards.

Stadium manager Brian Cottrell collected a trophy and a cheque for £3,000 at the awards dinner held at the NEC Birmingham last week.

The stadium hosts both national and international events such as the Amateur Athletics Association Under 20 Championships and the Bedford International Games which in the past has attracted big name Olympic champions such as Sally Gunnell and Tessa Sanderson.

It was nominated by Gwyn Potts, eastern region athletics developments coordinator and was complimented for its support of a range of sports.

The award once again puts Bedford on the national and international athletics map just weeks after De Montfort University Professor Simon Eassom pointed out how the area could benefit should the 2012 Olympics go to either London or Paris.

He said the excellence of local sporting facilities would make the town an ideal training ground for athletes competing in either London or Paris.

On hearing of the award he said:

"The award for the Bedford International Athletics Stadium confirms what a top-class, all-round sporting venue it is.

If London wins the Olympic bid for 2012, the award will make the possibility of an Olympic village being set up in Bedford even more of a likelihood, as athletes could use the facilities for training in track and field events."

BoS reports that while not yet on his uppers the Duke of Bedford has dropped down in the charts of the country's rich list.

The 25th duke inherited the title last June when his father died at 63.

The new duke shot up the Sunday Times rich list, from 86th position in 2003 to 62 in the table last year, with a value of £600 million.

This year he has dropped 40 places with only an estimated wealth of £490 million.

His father left him £9.1 million in his will but it is assumed that much of the estate was handed over years before for tax reasons.

The house and the grounds of Woburn are valued at £100 million.

It is the art treasures that hold the real value. Last year it was reported that the Duke owned 24 Canalettos and more than 200 other works then valued at around £550 million.

The Wells brewing family has also slipped down the list in the last 12 months.

John Wells and his family own Charles Wells brewery, estimated as being worth £55 million.

They stand at 874 in the top 1,000 richest people in the country.

Last year they were 118 places higher although they had an estimated wealth of £52 million.

The list is considered to be the definitive guide to the wealth of Britain's 1,000 richest people or families.

The Times&Citizens leads on the report that 250 jobs are under threat amidst revelations that the Debenhams distribution centre is to move from Bedford.

Two car salesmen who flogged vehicles that had been clocked by more than half a million miles pleaded guilty to the offence.

Stuart Houghton and Colin Cox, of PCS Motors, in Melbourne Street, Bedford, appeared at Luton Crown Court on Monday to face conspiracy charges relating to ten separate vehicles.

The investigation carried out by Bedfordshire County Council's trading standards service followed a tip-off to the BBC's Lifting The Bonnet programme, which covered various dubious practices carried out by car dealers. Among them was PCS Motors.

In the programme an undercover reporter bought a Volvo estate with 76,000 miles on the clock.

But when the true figure was checked, the Volvo was found to have covered more than 146,000 miles.

Tapes of the encounter were handed over to Bedfordshire trading standards, who investigated the sale along with other complaints from members of the public.

Not only were more clocked cars discovered but, in an extra twist to the tale, PCS Motors tried to sell the clocked Volvo again, this time to a trading standards officer posing as a customer.

The officer was told that the vehicle had travelled 70-80,000 miles and that the mileage had been verified.

Prosecuting counsel Miles Bennett described the investigation as a "masterful inquiry".
Sentencing has been deferred until June when the court will take into account a separate offence.

Carl Davies, head of Bedfordshire trading standards and registration services, said: "This is a fine example of the media and trading standards working together to expose crime.

"Houghton and Cox committed crimes that increased the value of vehicles by over £20,000.

"Bringing them to book has taken a long time but this result sends a clear message to the car trade."

Since the investigation started, trading standards in Bedfordshire have introduced a register of recommended car traders called Trading Standards Approved.

Consumers buying a second-hand car should always challenge the seller over the accuracy of the mileage and check with the previous owner or a mileage verification company.

Bravery or....?

A shopkeeper has told how he forced an armed robber to flee his shop empty-handed.

Harminder Bhogal, 39, who runs the Londis store in Stanley Street, Bedford, was threatened first with a gun and then a knife in the attempted robbery on Monday morning.

But Mr Bhogal simply told the hooded robber not to be so stupid and pushed him out of the shop. Mr Bhogal said:

"It was a bit of a dramatic day but it didn't kick in until afterwards when I started shaking and went home for a few hours.

"My mind just went blank because I was so surprised to see a man wearing a balaclava in my shop.

"I didn't even think about my own safety. My first thought was to get him out of here.

"It was only after talking to my wife and kids that I realised that what I did was maybe a bit stupid."

He was sorting out the daily papers when a man wearing a balaclava entered the shop at about 7am on Monday.

The would-be robber pointed a pistol-sized handgun at the shopkeeper's head and demanded money.

After being pushed away, the robber then pulled a knife. But again Mr Bhogal refused to be intimidated and forced the thug out of the door.

Police are looking for a white man, aged 20-24, slim, with fair hair and a moustache. He wore blue overalls and white trainers which had a blue sole.

While Paula Radcliffe won the London Marathon this Sunday, for the third year in succession, there are also a number of other local heroes who deserve recognition, and the Times and Citizen lists a few:

More than 32,000 runners – watched by over half a million spectators – took to the streets in the capital to participate in the 25th London Marathon.

Bedford's favourite athlete Paula Radcliffe won her third London Marathon, finishing in 2hrs 17mins to beat the previous best women-only race world record.

Other dedicated runners from all over Bedfordshire put in no-less impressive performances over the gruelling 26-mile race.

Raymond Palcic, a partially-sighted Flitwick market trader who lost his nephew to cancer, took part to raise £1,800 for the Cancer and Leukaemia in Childhood (CLIC) charity.

Mr Palcic was also diagnosed with cancer himself a few years ago. The 59-year-old said:

"The crowds really got me going, it would have been a long trek without them.

After completing the race in 4hrs 57mins, I was really pleased considering the number of people who had to pull out because of heat exhaustion."

Another Flitwick man Andrew Pearce, of Conway Drive, ran to support The National Autistic Society (NAS) in support of his 18-year-old sister Katie.

Mr Pearce, said: "This was my biggest challenge and running the London Marathon was a fantastic way to raise vital funds for the National Autistic Society."

Flitton businesswoman Elaine Robertson, 49, and her son Karl, 27 – who also works for the family firm GR Scientific Limited – raised over £5,000 for the Make-A-Wish Foundation UK, the charity that aims to grant wishes to children with life-threatening illnesses.

Elaine said: "This was the first marathon for both of us. I wanted to run it before my 50th birthday and thought it would be rather fun to carry the flag as a fairy. The support from the crowd was amazing."

Rachel Bridger, 34, of Eagle Drive, Flitwick, has already raised over £1,500 for the Breakthrough in Breast Cancer charity.

The Bedford Harriers member ran her first marathon in 5hrs 13mins and said: "The training itself was harder than the race.

"The crowds were amazing and really spurred me on. The time just flew past and before I knew it I was crossing the finishing line."

A headteacher from Sharnbrook raised £1,500 for spinal cord injury charity ASPIRE.
John Greevy, 50, of Ashcroft High School, Luton, crossed the line in 3hrs 42mins as part of a team of 25 runners.

The squad, who ran together for the Bedford Hospital's Charity, raised cash to help pay for portable bladder scanning equipment.

The scanners will be able to provide information to diagnose, treat and manage urinary conditions.

Jude Cottam, event co-ordinator of the Bedford Hospital's Charity, asked: "Which sport is there which allows you to be in the same event alongside the world's best? The average man in the street can run with world-class athletes. This doesn't happen in football, cricket or any other sport."

A 180-strong Parkinson's Disease Society (PDS) team included Bedford man Edward Bray, who finished the course in 3hrs 45mins.

He has raised around £1,200 in sponsorship for neurological disorder sufferers.

The big news for rugby fans and, really, for Bedford in general was the triumph of the Bedford Blues in the final for the Powergen Shield, at Twickenham.

Some five thousand fans are estimated to have gone to Twickenham, and seated together at the East stand, they formed a massive block of blue opposite the entrance from which the players emerged. It must have been a great morale booster for the players.

It was a nailbiter, especially in the last few minutes, but when the final whistle blue, the roar of "Bedford! Bedford! was simply enormous!

Natually I had my camera there, and the pictures can be seen HERE. It was a fitting end to a successful season, and there can be few who are not delighted with the impact Rudi Straeuli has had upon the team in the past few months.

As expats will know, just about everything in the news is concerned with the coming election. I have deliberately omitted any news about this, for sanity's sake.

Priory Park, Bedford

Week ending 23 April 2005