4 Clitheroe Advertiser &Times, Thursday, February 9th, 2006


www.clitheroetoday.co.uk


Delay should entitle


by Duncan Smith


FARMERS who have waited a year for new Single Farm Pay­ ments should get their money now or be paid interest for the “bungling” delay, according to Ribble Valley Conservative MEP Sir Robert Atkins. He is outraged that English farmers


who have already waited a year for their Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) payments may now have to wait a further six months until the final legal deadline of June 30th, even though Welsh and Scottish farmers received their funds before Christmas. Sir Robert, pictured, was speaking


out after Secretary of State for Envi­ ronment, Food and Rural Affairs Margaret Beckett adressed the Euro­


pean Parliament’s agriculture com­ mittee. Farmers were originally promised a


payment date of February - which would already constitute a year-long wait for their money - but the Secre­ tary of State refused to say when her department would finally give farmers their dues. The Single Farm Payment is vital


to the survival of many British farm­ ers, but the Government’s Rural Pay­ ments Agency has so far been unable to cope with a regional payments structure chosen to administer the reformed CAP regime. Sir Robert has said that a t best,


farmers have been severely disadvan­ taged and at worst they will go out of business. He is demanding Mrs Beck­ ett publicly apologises to farmers and that her department (DEPRA) pays


Gershwin show for


parish church society A GERSHWIN produc­ tion will take centre stage in Clitheroe this weekend. Members of the Parish


Church Operatic and Dra­ matic Society will be per­ forming “Crazy For You” from this Saturday until next Saturday, the 18th. For this production,


being staged at the St Mary’s Centre, the society has secured the services of new musical director Chris Andrews, of Preston. He is MD for the Thornton- Cleveleys Society. Howard Raw is direct­


ing the show, with Ann Grogan as choreographer and Philip Dobson as accompanist/chorus mas­ ter. ■ Well known numbers


including “I ’ve Got Rhythm”, “Someone to


Watch Over Me” and


“ Nice Work if You Can Get I t”, are included in this George and Ira Gersh­ win show, which is costing £20,000 to produce. .' For the first time the


society has hired raised seating to give audience members a better ■view. Tickets costing £8 for


front stalls and £10 for rear stalls, are on sale tomorrow from 7 to 8 p.m. and on Saturday between 10-30 and 11-30 a.m. at the St Mary’s Centre. Alternatively, ring the


ticket hotline on 01200 424545 or visit the soci­ ety’s website at the follow­ ing: www.thopera.co.uk. ■ Evening performances


s ta r t at 7-30 p.m. and there will be a matinee at 2-30 p.m. on the 18th.


Warning on energy bills


RIBBLE VALLEY busif nesses locked in uncompet­ itive contracts are over­ spending by thousands on their energy bills, warns the East Lancashire Chamber of Commerce. Fear of upsetting cur­


rent suppliers, neglecting to shop around for best prices and contract small print have been highlight­ ed by the chamber as the three main factors behind the situation, which is hit­ ting businesses hard; And.


■


with energy prices dou­ bling in the past two years, the chamber’s commercial director Stewart Maloney, says now is the time to act. “Companies looking to


renew their contracts in ■ April, for example, need to start now,” he said. “Some suppliers require up to 90 days’ notice for termina­ tion, meaning that if you


don’t speak to them now, it will be too late come renewal time. You’ll be locked in.” Mr Maloney also moved


to quash fears that coihpa- nies could be cut off pre­ maturely should they can­ cel, adding that finding a better deal can be easier than most fear. He said:'“In conjunc­


tion with our. endorsed provider. Utility Auditing Ltd, we offer a full and free assessment of businesses and will find cost-effective solutions to reduce energy bills, as well as using our bargaining power and gov­ ernment aid to negotiate better deals.” For more information on


energy contracts and to request a free assessment, contact Stewart Maloney on 01254 356400 or visit www.chamberelancs.co.uk


interest to English farmers for failing to get payments to them within a rea­ sonable time.


Clitheroe 422324 (Editorial), 422323 (Advertising), Burnley 422331 (Classified) Vh «i li 111’ '.r r? ^ '-" 'S't'nit’’ 'Cr,r,i',''|l;,c5t<h,W


Clitherpe 422324 (Edjtorial), 42^323 (Advprtismg),Burnle5( 42.2331 (Classified), He said: "The British Government


. has failed English farmers once again. Scotland, Wales and other countries in the EU have managed to pay farmers their dues with only a reasonable


■delay, so why must English farmers find themselves once again facing bankruptcy because the Government, is failing to fulfil a simple responsibili­


ty? "English farmers have been waiting


a year for these payments and now they are being told to wait another five months. How many of them will go bust in the meantime? If any farmer were late in paying taxes, he would soon receive a reprimand from the Government and have to pay interest on the money owed,'yet the Minister's reaction to me today was indignant.


, "The Minister should apologise to interest immediately to all farmers and


, DEFRA is morally obliged to pay interest on the money owed to farmers due to its incompetence. The new pay­ ments system the UK has brought in is overtly bureaucratic and should be reviewed immediately. I t seems to have been, deliberately designed so that farmers don't understand it, but now even the officials that created the monster are unable to get their heads


■ around how it functions." • A report in last Friday’s Farmers


Guardian says that the Rural Pay­ ments Agency is on course to estab­ lish entitlements on February 14th, and will inform farmers of their indi- ■vidual details within two weeks. This, they maintain, ivill mean that


most farmers will receive their pay­ ments in full by the end of next month.


Gastle Cement’s helping hand for greeii group


AN environmental group dedicat­ ed to protecting the area’s rivers has been given a helping hand by Castle Cement. It has donated the use of offices


within its Ribblesdale site, on the edge of Clitheroe, to the Ribble Catchment Conservation Trust. Since the Trust was established eight years ago, Castle Cement has donated hundreds of tonnes of stone to help stop the erosion of riverbanks along the rivers Ribble, Calder and Hodden


- Now the company has stepped in to help the Trust with its growth plans by offering free use of a semi-redundant office block .within its Ribblesdale works. Trust chairman Philip Lord


said: “To enable us to expand the work we carry out, we’ve recently taken on two full-time staff, which meant \ve desperately needed somewhere for. them to work from. “Castle has been so good to us


during the past few years and when we mentioned our predica­ ment to them, the company immediately came up with an answer.


“We’re absolutely delighted


because this help is absolutely invaluable to us.” Trust member and maintenance


engineer at Castle, Chris Hosker explained that the scope of the work carried out by the Trust is almost limitless. “We’ve been working extensive­


ly on the streams which feed our main rivers, because if these aren’t maintained, soil washes into the river which has serious implica­ tions on the life of the river. For instance, salmon need to


feed in the gravel on the riverbed and they can’t do so if too much soil covers the gravel. “By preventing the erosion of


the riverbanks, we are creating a haven for wildlife such as otters and water voles. “The problem is there are hun­


dreds of feeder streams which need attention so our resources are severely stretched. We certainly wouldn’t be where we are today in terms of the progress we have made without the help we receive from Castle Cement.” Gareth Price, general manager


at Castle Cement’s Ribblesdale works said: "We take our environ­ mental responsibilities very seri­ ously We know how useful stone is to the Trust in the work they


carry out and so we’re happy to help out. We were also pleased help out with office space.” ()ur picture shows Mr Lord, left, with Mr Price (s)


Jail every weekend for drunken hairdresser who tried to headbutt a police officer


A DRUNKEN man who bit a policeman on the hand outside a Clitheroe pub has been sentenced to "weekend jail". A court was told that Michael


Dalby had drunk a "staggering" amount of alcohol on the day he was arrested outside the Dog Music and Sports Bar, in Well- gate. He had tried to headbutt and


knee an officer before headbut­ ting the pavement and later bit­ ing the hand of PC Pat Sutton. . The 26-year-old hairdresser, of


Peel Street, Padiham, was sen­ tenced by Preston Crown Court to 75 days intermittent custody, to be spread over 50 weeks. ; This means he will be behind bars at Kirkham Prison from


Friday eveniiigs through to Sun­ day evenings. Dalby had pleaded guilty to a


charge of assault occasioning actual bodily harm. Mr David Macro (prosecut­


ing) told the court that it was May last year when police were called to an incident where peo­ ple had reportedly been attacked on leaving the Dog in Wellgate. The defendant was pointed out


as having been involved. . Dalby was arrested by two


officers, but managed to break away.


He went on to stagger.into a


road and throw, himself on the bonnet of a police vehicle. After this, he tried to heabutt a police officer when handcuffed.


He also tried to knee the offi­


cer in the groin area. The defendant continued


being aggressive and so was taken to the ground and repeat­ edly told to calm do\vn. He swore and issued threats before starting to headbutt the pavement. PC


Sutton tried to stop Dalby injur­ ing himself. Mr Macro said: "As PC Sutton


held his head, the defendant snapped at the officer's right


hand, biting him on the rear of the hand. “This caused two puncture wounds, one of which was quite


deep and immediately started'to bleed". The.constable was treated at hospital. The court also heard


th a t Dalby had five previous convictions for violence, includ­ ing assaulting an officer. Mr Mark Friend (defending)


said Dalby had consumed quite a "staggering" amount of alcohol that day. Dalby had been drink­ ing vast quantities of alcohol, on a daily basis last year, but that had now changed. During the week, the defen­


dant did not drink at all and he only had a modest drink at week­ ends. "This is not a man who pres­


ents a significant risk of serious harm to the public in future" said Mr Friend.


v , Judge Pamela Badley said the


offence had occured in "disgrace­ ful circumstances.”


i I


by Helen McKell


A FORMER Clitheroe resident, now based in Cheshire, visited Hurst Green


recently to make an unusual plea. Talking to members of the village


■Women’s Institute, she asked for old baby vests, towels and nappies... for orangutans. Miss Ann Birtwell has worked among


the orangutan population of Borneo for the past seven years, having been moved by their plight, brought about by the destruc­ tion of the apes’ native rain forest to make way for the lucrative palm oil crop. Over the past 30 years, the orangutan


population has declined from 180,000 to 10,


000. . Miss Birtwell, a former Clitheroe Royal


Grammar School pupil who works free­ lance in the media, now devotes her free time to going out to Borneo, where she is the only westerner actually working among the orangutans in the rain forest. When they are rescued from palm plan­


tations, where they are likely to be shot, or returned from being held in illicit captmty


as pets, they are brought to the Orangutan Rehabiliation Centre in Sepilok, where Miss Birtwell helps to readjust them to life in the wild. Many of them are babies whose mothers


have been killed, and that-is where the baby vests, nappies and towels come in. ' She explained: “For the first few days


they only \yant to be held, and do nothing but cry.” The orangutan babies, who share 98% of


the same genes as humans, are dressed in simple baby clothes initially, and sleep in hammocks made from towels. Gradually, the animals are encouraged to fend for themselves, until eventually they are , released back into the wild in a designated nature reserve. Miss Birtwell stresses that donated baby


vests, in sizes up to about 6 months, must be loose-fitting and only white or cream- coloured. She is happy to accept old towels of any colour and size, and spare newborn nappies. If you think you have suitable goods you would like to contribute, please contact Mrs Catherine Whitham (01200 422350) for further details.


TIVO-HUNDRED motorbikes belonging to a Clitheroe-based importer were stolen from a lorry - while its driver was enjoying a sleep in his cab at a motorway service sta­ tion.


The theft occurred at the Chieveley Ser- . _


■vice Station at junction 13 on the M4, near Newbury in Berkshire, between the hours of 4 and 7 a.m. last Thursday. The driver, who was travelling from


Southampton to Clitheroe, was sleeping in his cabin in the lorry park of the service sta­ tion. A gang of thieves equipped with acety­ lene burners, cut open the steel container without awakening the driver and made off with 200 Hymoto “Dirt Rider” bikes. The driver only discovered the theft when


he had travelled some 9km. up the road and noticed something wasn't quite right. Fol­ lowing the incident, members of the public are being advised only to buy Hymoto-


Massive raid on lorry as driver slept branded miniature dirt bikes from an official


Hymoto source.' . Mr Stephen Tasker, managing director of


Hymoto Ltd, based on the Link 59 Business Park, said: "This is one of the stranger cases of its kind that I have ever heard of. “For thieves to work so quietly and take.


away such a volume of goods is quite aston­ ishing. Given the location of the theft, I would be surprised if any of the stolen bikes turned up in Lancashire, but then the kind of intelligence needed by the thieves to carry off this theft suggests they may have had knowledge of my business and the products


. weimport. “So there is always a possibility that they .


could turn up locally. “Luckily, I have still got a decent stock of


these machines, along with the complete range of Hymoto off-road bikes, quad bikes and road buggies."


_____ ,


Help needed for these tiny orphans


: i I I I MISS I !


BIRTWELLis pictured with some of the orangutans at


the rehabilita­ tion centre


where she works in Borneo, (s)


www.clitheroetoday.co.uk


25-yard ride leads to ban


RIDING a “minimoto” motorbike on the pavement after drinking led to a driving ban for a 30-year-old Clitheroe man. Blackburn magistrates heard th a t


Andrew Carl Jones and some friends had been drinking beforedeciding to take the miniature motorbike on to private land in Clitheroe. They rejected a “special reasons” argu­


ment that he should not be disqualified based on the shortness of distance driven, just 25 yards. Jones, of Shireburn Avenue, Clitheroe,


pleaded guilty to driving with excess alcohol, without insurance and other than in accordance with a licence. He was fined a total of £460 with £50


costs and banned from driving for 12 months - the minimum disqualification - despite a reading nearly three times the legal limit. ■ Mr Kevin Preston (defending) said the


officer in his statement said that Jones was riding at little more than walking speed and the officer’s estimate of the dis­ tance driven was 25 yards.


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Phillips; Tractor backing trophy - James Spurgeon; Involvemenl trophy - Louise Hartley; BesI girl - Grace Thornber; Mosl improved junior member - Sair Tenant; Best male - Matthew ■Whitwell; Best junior girl - Beth Thornber; Top sheep judge - Richard Whitwell; Top interme­ diate stock judge - William Bris. tol; Bowland region member ol the year - Louise Hartley, National call my bluff - Ber Hartley, Chris Bristol, Bridget Hartley.


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