Prison suicide rate linked to mental illness and neglect

10:25 Thursday 22nd January 2015
BBC Radio Cambridgeshire

PAUL STAINTON: Some worrying statistics out today about deaths of prison inmates – one third of all deaths in prison last year were a result of inmates taking their own lives. This is according to figures from the Howard League for Penal Reform. The suicide rate in UK prisons is at its worst for the last seven years. So we’re asking this morning, are prisons in this country too tough? Many saying down the years that they’re not tough enough. But are we failing to provide basic mental health care to our inmates? Should we be looking to reform and help rather than punish? Would that help? Andrew Neilson is from the Howard League. He says the problem of suicide in prison is growing.
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ANDREW NEILSON: We’ve seen staffing resources reduced because prisons are making cuts like other public services. But at the same time the prison population is rising, and prison overcrowding is very acute. And one of the key barometers as to whether the prisons are in crisis is definitely deaths behind bars.
(LIVE)
PAUL STAINTON: Well now, in a joint effort with the Centre for Mental Health, the Howard League for Penal Reform are calling for the death toll in prisons to be ended. So should we be taking more care of the health of our patients in prison? Is it right that so many are taking their own lives? Well joining me now is Noel Smith. He’s editor of Inside Time. He’s an ex-prisoner. Morning Noel.
NOEL SMITH: Good morning.
PAUL STAINTON: And we’ve got Frances Crook, who’s the Chief Executive of the Howard League for Penal Reform. Frances we’ll get to in just a second. We’ve also got Andy Bell, who’s the Deputy Chief Executive of the Centre for Mental Health. Andy, good morning.
ANDY BELL: Good morning.
PAUL STAINTON: Good morning Frances. We’ve got you now. Good morning.
FRANCES CROOK: Hello.
PAUL STAINTON: We had a power cut earlier and it threw everything all over the shop.
FRANCES CROOK: OK.
PAUL STAINTON: We’re almost back to normal. Noel first of all is I can, from somebody that’s been inside, we spoke before about this. Are things worse now than they were ten, fifteen, twenty years ago? Continue reading “Prison suicide rate linked to mental illness and neglect”

Developers warned of flood risk around Huntingdon and Alconbury

07:41 Tuesday 20th January 2015
BBC Radio Cambridgeshire

DOTTY MCLEOD: The area around Huntingdon has been named among the top twenty areas of the country that’s most at risk of flooding. A campaign has been launched today by the Association of British Insurers, who say annual flood defence spending needs to rise to £1 billion a year by 2025 in order to meet the rising flood threat in the UK. It’s also calling for no new homes to be built in flood risk areas. Tom Horn is in Alconbury near Huntingdon, a village that faces challenges with flooding. What can you tell us Tom?
(OB)
TOM HORN: Yes Dotty good morning. It’s a cold white frosty morning here. I’m on the medieval bridge which has arches spanning Alconbury Brook, which runs through the village. It’s on The Green, a lovely picturesque green, lots of trees, and surrounded by houses on either side. But of course, as you’ve been hearing, this area is among the top twenty places most at risk from flooding in England. With me here is Ray Pickering, who runs the Alconbury Flood Plain Facebook page, and is a flood risk consultant. Morning Ray. So what issues does this area face with flooding?
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Rapid expansion brings challenging issues for Cambridge City Council

17:08 Monday 19th January 2015
BBC Radio Cambridgeshire

CHRIS MANN: Cambridge is a tale of two cities, according to a new report. On the plus side, there is the lowest unemployment amongst UK cities, with a booming local economy helped by the best-educated workforce. On the negative side, rising house prices and rents along with falling real wages making life quite a struggle for many. So what can be done? Well earlier I challenged councillor Lewis Herbert, Leader of Cambridge City Council.
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LEWIS HERBERT: Well it’s good news for Cambridge. It demonstrates that we’re up there in terms of prosperity. We’ve added 12,000 jobs in 10 years, and just about 12,000 homes. But it also shows that we’ve got a few challenges Chris. We’ve got great inequality, in the sense that we’ve got falling incomes for quite a lot of our people, and house prices have been really rising. So Cambridge is not without its challenges, but we’ve got a good future, provided we get on top of them.
CHRIS MANN: So it’s a tale of two cities. Who is suffering here, do you think? Who are the people who are losing out? Continue reading “Rapid expansion brings challenging issues for Cambridge City Council”

Improving connectivity across the rail network

07:42 Friday 16th January 2015
BBC Radio Cambridgeshire

DOTTY MCLEOD: A radical reform of Cambridgeshire’s railway lines could make faster and more reliable journeys. Network Rail has drawn up its Improving Connectivity report, and as the name suggests, it focuses on improving connections, also increasing train speeds and making journeys by train more attractive. Chris Burton is Vice Chairman of Rail Futures East Anglian branch. He’s also Editor of Rail East magazine. What do you make of this report then Chris?
CHRIS BURTON: Well good morning. It’s a very interesting one in the sense that it shows a vision for a way in the future, because I think what they want to do is to create timetables for the whole of East Anglia, which obviously Cambridge is part of, that mirrors what they do in Switzerland, which they call a Taktfahrplan. It means everything works on good clean connections. So the places like Cambridge and Ely, Norwich, Ipswich and Colchester, when you arrive at those stations, your onward journey to wherever will start within about ten minutes of you arriving at that place. So you won’t have to hang around for half a day waiting for a train forward to wherever you’re going on to.
DOTTY MCLEOD: So this would be quite radical actually, if they try and put this in place.
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Estover – County Council Leader bids to save the land from development

07:20 Thursday 15th January 2015
BBC Radio Cambridgeshire

DOTTY MCLEOD: A campaign to prevent developers moving onto the Estover playing fields in March appears to have made a significant breakthrough. It’s been reported in the Cambs Times, who are supporting this campaign, that the Leader of Cambridgeshire County Council has pledged to hand over half the area to March Town Council. The other half would be offered on a lease to sports groups. The Leader of Cambridgeshire County Council Steve Count joins me now. So Steve, what are you suggesting now for these playing fields at Estover?
STEVE COUNT: Good morning Dotty and thank you for giving me the time on air to put a couple of these things right. The County Council isn’t pledging anything. What I’ve done is take a personal motion to the Council, where I think I’ve got enough support to win, to actually give just about 60% over on a 99 year lease, and 40% roughly on a 7 year lease. And both leases, as opposed to what was in the paper, go to March Town Council, who have the constitutional set-up to receive them. March Town Council will then set up a charitable trust with the local playing fields association and all the sports bodies in March, trying to get as much interest as possible to actually set that up for a more sustainable long term development. So just a little bit of clarification there. The point about being a Private Motion is as opposed to the County Council that once things are passed they go ahead and do it ..
DOTTY MCLEOD: It’s an attempt, rather than a pledge. Is that right?
STEVE COUNT: Yes. I have to win the vote. Yes.
DOTTY MCLEOD: Sure.
STEVE COUNT: I think the way that local people have demonstrated to the people at Cambridgeshire County, just the depth of feeling and the reasoning why it shouldn’t be developed on, has given me a great help in putting towards a package that I now believe we can deliver all the sports facilities without the need for development.
DOTTY MCLEOD: Because there was previously this suggestion that there would be 100 odd homes on the site. What’s happened to that?
STEVE COUNT: That’s still sitting there. That is still the County Council option that they believe is the preferred option, and it is, if I succeed at Full Council, that my option becomes the preferred way forward. If I fail, then it goes back to the General Purposes Committee, which will be afterwards, to go back to Plan A so to speak.
DOTTY MCLEOD: Were you involved Steve in the initial decision to put that County Council proposal in place?
STEVE COUNT: Very much so. Yes. I’ve been involved in this ever since I’ve been a county councillor.
DOTTY MCLEOD: So what’s changed your mind?
STEVE COUNT: The fact that I now believe that we can get the sporting facilities without the development, and the way that the local people have been able to help with this massive massive campaign. Without that, I don’t think I could have convinced a number of other people to back this new approach. It will be on a knife-edge. I think I have enough support to actually achieve this, and I think if the people of March continue to lobby in exactly the same way as they did before, I think we can get this over the line.
DOTTY MCLEOD: OK. And when does your motion get decided?
STEVE COUNT: 17th February.
DOTTY MCLEOD: OK. So a little while to wait.
STEVE COUNT: Yes.
DOTTY MCLEOD: And that’s Steve Count there, the Leader of Cambridgeshire County Council, bringing a motion to stop the plans for development on the Estover playing fields. Johnny D is in March this morning. He’s been meeting one of the men behind the campaign to keep these buildings off these playing fields.
Continue reading “Estover – County Council Leader bids to save the land from development”

Cambridge city centre congestion – Lewis Herbert on proposed new measures

07:20 Tuesday 13th January 2015
BBC Radio Cambridgeshire

DOTTY MCLEOD: Proposals for new transport projects in and around Cambridge have been discussed for the first time by the Greater Cambridge City Deal Joint Assembly. They include bus priority projects on Histon, Milton and Madingley Roads in Cambridge, cycle links between the city and Saffron Walden, Haverhill and Royston, and improvements to the Foxton level crossing. Recommendations will now be made to the City Deal Executive Board to discuss later this month. Lewis Herbert is the Leader of Cambridge City Council. So Lewis, what will you be recommending?
LEWIS HERBERT: Well we’ve got £100 million to spend, and people who are in their cars this morning, particularly people who are listening at home and about to get into their cars, know that we’ve got a massive congestion problem. So we’ll be recommending that we need to have some radical solutions for the city centre. We’ll be recommending that we have to help people with different options for the last two to four miles, so that buses genuinely do leapfrog cars on these roads that are gridlocked. And we’ll be recommending work to win further funding. We’ve got a Science Park station. We’ve got the A14 improvements. But we also need to persuade Government that we need to fund an Addenbrookes station as well.
DOTTY MCLEOD: So Lewis you’ve said you need to ease congestion, and we need radical solutions and we need help for buses, so that people have options when they reach the city centre. have you got anything a bit more specific, a bit more concrete that you are going to be recommending to the City Deal Executive Board?
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City centre congestion in Cambridge and Peterborough a cause for concern

10:23 Tuesday 13th January 2015
BBC Radio Cambridgeshire

PAUL STAINTON: We’re also talking about congestion in our city centres, in Peterborough and Cambridge, and asking whether you’re being put off venturing into both cities because of the terrible traffic. Does it put you off? Yesterday Margaret in Peterborough got in touch with us about the traffic along Bourges Boulevard in Peterborough. She had this to say.
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CALLER: Bourges Boulevard is not as good as it used to be. You could go down Bourges Boulevard, be into town in a few minutes. Now you’re just sitting in queues of traffic. The journey down from Werrington to Queensgate shopping centre on a Saturday afternoon, it was awful. I caught the Delaine bus. I felt quite sorry for the driver really. We got to B&Q just over the roundabout and it was two lanes of traffic. Luckily the bus driver turned off at the Toys ‘R Us roundabout and went round the back street, and he must have only had about five minutes before he then had to drive the bus back to Stamford. With the roadworks, there’s too many traffic lights. I’m just wondering whether the Council seem to be deterring people, deterring them from coming into the shopping centre, because it will be a little while before I go down there again. It’s awful.
(LIVE)
PAUL STAINTON: Well that was Margaret on the Show yesterday. But it’s not just Peterborough of course. Cambridge experienced some of the most congested traffic it’s ever seen just before Christmas. And joining me now is Andy Campbell. He’s Managing Director of Stagecoach in the East. Morning Andy.
ANDY CAMPBELL: Morning.
PAUL STAINTON: How difficult is it in Peterborough and Cambridge for your bus drivers at the moment?
Continue reading “City centre congestion in Cambridge and Peterborough a cause for concern”

Social media preferences reveal personality traits

07:53 Tuesday 13th January 2015
BBC Radio Cambridgeshire

DOTTY MCLEOD: Are you on Facebook? Are you on Twitter? Have you ever thought about what your online profile says about you? Researchers at Cambridge University have devised a way to tell your personality, to tell what you’re like, simply by looking at your Facebook likes. And it is surprisingly, slightly terrifyingly accurate. David Stillwell is from the Psychometrics Centre at the University of Cambridge and is one of the authors of a new study. Morning David.
DAVID STILLWELL: Good morning.
DOTTY MCLEOD: So explain first of all for people who maybe aren’t on Facebook or don’t use it a lot, what is a Facebook ‘like’?
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