We will look further than the north bank
SO, Austin Mitchell has not given up his quest to make our part of Lincolnshire into that county over the river.
His claims, in particular his ridiculous assumptions that the only transport links from this part of Lincolnshire are westward along the A180 and the Doncaster railway line, are a joke.
We have two main railway lines that link up with the East Midlands and the south as opposed to one line linking into his home county.
As for the A180, we have the A16 and the A46, amongst others, also linking to the East Midlands and the south. Even the A180 becomes the M180 which in turn links into the national motorway network which leads to ALL parts of the country.
That is where our future prosperity lies. Not in a narrow thiefdom such as the projected (in Mitchell's eyes) "Humber Region" in which he probably sees himself as "King Austin the first" (and hopefully the last).
In this part of the country, Lincolnshire, we have always looked to our county seat Lincoln and the East Midlands, not a city over the north bank in a different county.
We do not need another disaster like the creation of "Blunderside" all over again, do we?
If we here in Lincolnshire need expertise from outside sources we are not just going to look in your home county, are we Mr Mitchell? Of course not. Look at the mistake we made when electing a son of that county to represent us in parliament! You know as well as I do that your welcome in this part of England has expired. And for some time too!
As for the regional development agency. If that had been centred on Lincoln I doubt we would have been any worse off, but I haven't taken into account the Whitehall mandarins who are still in love with the prospect of an expanded county centred north and west of the Humber. Just as yourself!
Do us all a favour, Mr Mitchell. Step down and return to your home county. We don't want your empire building here. Oh yes, Mr Mitchell, one of your favourite arguments in the creation of "Blunderside" was that Grimsby wasn't in Lincolnshire because it was a county borough in its own right. Lincoln was also a county borough, just like Grimsby, but they didn't pack it off to Nottinghamshire, did they?
Chris Walker, Simons Place, Cleethorpes, Lincolnshire.
The Telegraph says
How do you refer to where you live? This area has long had an identity crisis, which the much-hated Humberside only fuelled. But has anyone come up with a solution? One idea by North East Lincolnshire Council in 2007 to change its name to Great Grimsby and Cleethorpes Borough Council, because bosses said no one knows where we are, was rejected by residents. But we are simply not big enough to go it alone. Whilst North East Lincolnshire is an administrative county, and Lincolnshire is our historical county, we also have much in common with the north bank because of our ports and major Humber businesses. A new body to replace Yorkshire Forward could well, in the short space of time there is to propose a replacement, help or hinder our identity crisis. Perhaps there is no one solution?
10 Comments
by Adam, Fleet (Formerly Grimsby)
Monday, August 16 2010, 7:14PM
“Austin wants to turn us into Yorkies?
The guy lives in Rochdale, embarrassed himself on Channel 4 and doesnt make much of a voice in Parliament yet the people of Grimsby still voted him in.
Look at him, doesn't he look tired.”
by Neil, Cleethorpes
Friday, July 30 2010, 11:28AM
“Try York,usually in February,for the Viking festival. "Cultural differences"? Don't think so. It is a hoot......My best memory? Meeting a group of very sozzled Scandewegians,dressed in Viking gear. Their aim? To get even more sozzled while drinking decent beer. I became their tour guide. Did I mind? Not really....”
by Neil, Cleethorpes
Friday, July 30 2010, 10:20AM
“Forgot to mention,Jo. Are they tied? Quite often. Our language. There is One. History? Two. Geography? Three. Ever noticed a continent called Europe? I could continue,but ........”
by Neil, Cleethorpes
Friday, July 30 2010, 9:35AM
“"Bonkers",Jo? Yup ! Good spot. Win a prize. If you ever visit Roscoff (for instance),most people speak a very unusual form of French. They still have close ties to SW England. Pub names,cafe names,street names,place names etc......”
by josephine white, Grimsby
Friday, July 30 2010, 8:40AM
“Are you actually suggesting that because an English town or village holds it's original Danish/Dutch/French/Roman place name, that those who live there are culturally tied forever to the countries concerned??
Neil, you're bonkers.”
by Neil, Cleethopes
Friday, July 30 2010, 1:01AM
“What was that twaddle,Jo? The North Sea used to be called the German Sea. The French do not call it the English Channel. Try something unusual. North West France. South West England. Look for "Tre" for a villages name. There are loads of them. Why? They were very closely knit communities. Yet another lesson.....”
by Jimmy Tickleburger., Meggies.
Thursday, July 29 2010, 11:05AM
“David,remember the last general election? The common thread amongst these posts was that if the Labour Party fielded a donkey or a monkey pinned with a red rosette then they would be elected to parliament. Regardless. A lot of local folk wished he was a monkey but stood for election in Hartlepool instead! Austin has for long been regarded as a 'professional' Yorkshireman, a career move he made when presenting the ITV magazine programme 'Calender'. Look at the man's history as an MP representing a constituency in Lincolnshire. He was one of a small minority over here that really supported Humberside! Don't forget, you can take a Yorkshire man out of Yorkshire, but you cannot take Yorkshire out of the man! As for me?... A true Yellowbelly.....off to Yorkshire for my hols, as usual!”
by josephine white, Grimsby
Thursday, July 29 2010, 7:52AM
“Whilst I agree with the letter writer about the need to 're-visit' our area's identity, I don't think there was any call whatsoever for the personal vitriol towards Austin Mitchell. He's no more responsible for the salami slicing of England into EU regions than Mr Walker himself.
NE Lincs should never have been annexed to Yorkshire in the first place, .. certainly not without a referendum of the people of ne lincs anyway .. its been a disaster. (I've never understood why people south of the river just sat back and allowed it to happen in the first place).
And I don't accept the GT's glib assertion that we have more in common with Hull than we do with Lincoln. What utter nonsense. That's like saying that just because we're a fishing port we should have been annexed to the Scottish Highlands because Lochinver happens to be a fishing port. We have no more 'in common' with Hull than we do with North Shields, or Cornwall, or Fishguard in Wales!
NE Lincs was annexed to Yorkshire because it fitted in with the EU's obsession with soulless homogenous 'clusters' and 'hubs' bla bla bla (and it's complete disregard and contempt for cultural identity) The EU wanted it so (Google the 'EU North Sea Region')
Heaven knows, we've seen little benefits from it ourselves!”
by Richard, Grimsby
Wednesday, July 28 2010, 9:31PM
“Austin I've always had a dislike for you and your polices ever since the days of your posing on TV.
Half the time you talk so much Yorkie crap that if one watches you have one hell of a job to get it out .
I was born A yellow Belle many years ago so what bloody right do you have to alter me into a dumb Yorkie no way Austin.
Let some one Else take your place your a crook sir as far as your concerned the gravy train as stopped running off you get as times are changing.”
by David Sanderson, Grimsby
Wednesday, July 28 2010, 7:25PM
“Let me get this straight: Austin Mitchell has been the MP for Grimsby for 30+ years, people have continued to vote him in despite his hidden agenda to make us Yorkies? WOW, I don't vote for the guy myself but I think even his staunchest critic wouldn't buy into this little conspiracy theory.”