Politicians Celebrate Slashing of Humber Bridge Tolls

Two local politicians are celebrating the slashing of the Humber Bridge toll from £3 to £1.50 which came into force at the beginning of this month.

East Yorkshire MP Greg Knight and former MP for Brigg and Goole, Ian Cawsey, were the first politicians to raise the issue of the tolls in the House of Commons back in 2008. They then led the first delegation to see Ministers on the issue and have been at the forefront of campaigns to see the tolls cut ever since.

Former Labour MP Ian Cawsey said today: ‘This goes to show what can be achieved when politicians from different parties work together in the local interest. Greg and I were the first politicians to raise this in the House by tabling an amendment to the Transport Bill under the last Labour Government and since then the campaign has grown with local authorities, other MP’s and members of the public adding their voice to the unjust level of bridge tolls. We are pleased that at last this campaign has had some success and the tolls have been slashed.’

Greg Knight added: ‘We are grateful for all the support that has been given to this cause and also to present Ministers for listening to what the local public were saying. This toll cut is going to be a good boost for the region and I have no doubt at all that success in this campaign has only been possible by politicians across the political spectrum working together for the benefit of the East Riding and North Lincolnshire.’

During the campaign a study by the Hull Chamber of Commerce showed that almost all local firms said they were impacted by the high level of tolls. The study showed that the high tolls across the bridge have acted as a significant constraint on the success of local businesses.

Knight Promotes Salt Awareness

East Yorkshire MP Greg Knight is marking Salt Awareness Week by highlighting the impact that a high salt intake can have on health.

National Salt Awareness Week runs from 26th – 1st April and is supported by many expert bodies including the British Heart Foundation, Cancer Research UK and the Stroke Association. Organisers are hoping to encourage the food industry and consumers to reduce salt in both processed food and home cooking.

Mr Knight, who has regularly campaigned on this issue, said: “Some food manufacturers and restaurants still use excess salt to give bland food extra taste. They need to be shamed into providing better quality food with less added salt”. Mr Knight pointed to many pre-packaged supermarket sandwiches which contain more than 75% of the daily allowance guideline for salt – yet are actually promoted as healthy.

Mr Knight said, “Many people still don’t realise that a high salt diet can not only lead to high blood pressure, but also to osteoporosis and other diseases and National Salt Awareness Week is to be congratulated for drawing attention to the risks of eating too much salt”.

Knight Backs Wildlife Protection Campaign

Greg Knight is backing a new campaign by the World Society for Protection of Animals (WSPA) to stamp out the international trade in endangered and vulnerable species.

The East Yorkshire MP said he was shocked to be shown a stuffed tiger cub which was slaughtered at 10 days of age and then mounted on a wooden plinth for “decorative purposes”. The baby cub was seized during a police raid in the UK.


Mr Knight said he was ‘repulsed’ at the trade and was supporting increased police activity to stamp it out.

The MP added, “There are only approximately 3,000 tigers left in the wild across the world. Indeed there are more privately owned tigers in America than there are tigers in the wild and anyone who takes part in this sickening trade deserves to face a substantial period in custody. This campaign has my full support.”

Knight: “Beware of the Interest Rate”

East Yorkshire MP Greg Knight is one of a number of MPs sponsoring a Parliamentary motion calling for an end to ‘stratospheric interest rates’ on short term loans.

The motion notes that an organisation called wonga.com currently advertises a ‘typical interest rate of 4,214%’. It says that whilst all financial institutions have the right to make a profit, many companies involved in short term lending are; ‘adding to poor families’ financial problems’ and that sensible restrictions on interest rate levels should be introduced.

Mr Knight said, “Short term money lenders can provide a useful service. However, their customers are frequently the most economically vulnerable in society and therefore action needs to be taken to stop four figure interest rate charges”.

Mr Knight added, “As things currently stand many of these services are nothing short of legalised-theft. If the industry does not reform its practice itself then the Government should step in with regulation. In the meantime my advice to consumers is check the APR”.

Yorkshire Wolds Meeting in Whitehall

A meeting has taken place in Whitehall between Natural Environment and Fisheries Minister Richard Benyon MP and East Yorkshire MP Greg Knight to discuss the problems surrounding the obtaining of Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) status.

Mr Knight is supporting campaigners who want to see the Yorkshire Wolds designated as an AONB.

Mr Knight said: “Currently the process is long-winded, drawn-out and costly and I believe steps can be taken to expedite the process and make it much easier to achieve.

If an area is worth protecting – like the Yorkshire Wolds – it should not take several years to achieve it, during which time desecration or development could take place.

Mr Knight spent over 40 minutes with the Minister arguing for the process to be streamlined. The Minister said he would look into the points Mr Knight had made and would respond to him in due course.

Afterwards Mr Knight said: “It was a friendly and constructive meeting and I am grateful to the Minister for listening. I hope he takes on board the points I have made”.

Knight in New Campaign to Cut Wind Farm Subsidies

East Yorkshire MP Greg Knight is one of over 100 Conservative MPs who are campaigning for the £400 million-a-year subsidies paid to the onshore wind turbine industry to be cut.

The MPs are also calling on Prime Minister David Cameron to tighten up planning laws so that local people have a better chance of stopping new farms being developed and protecting the countryside.

There are currently more than 3,000 onshore wind turbines in Britain and at the current subsidy levels at least 4,500 more are expected to be constructed over the coming years. These wind farms receive hundreds of millions of pounds from the Government and much of this cash ends up in the hands of energy companies and investment funds based abroad.

Mr Knight, who has long actively campaigned against wind farms said, “Wind farms are inefficient and unreliable. The wind cannot be guaranteed to blow at times of greatest energy demand. They are also extremely unsightly, blighting one of our most valuable natural resources – the countryside”.

Mr Knight added: “Wind farms are forcing up energy bills and swallowing disproportionate amounts of taxpayer-funded subsidies. It is wrong in these financially difficult times that hard-pressed consumers must pay for the expansion of inefficient, intermittent and unsightly onshore wind power.

Mr Knight is one of a number of signatories of a letter sent to the Prime Minister last week on this subject.

He is also due to meet the Environment Minister Richard Benyon MP later this month to discuss ways of protecting the beauty of the Yorkshire Wolds from inappropriate windfarm development and preserving it for future generations.

East Yorkshire MP Steps Up Wind Farms Fight

The European Union wants a major expansion of onshore wind farm development across Europe to help meet their green targets.

However there is increasing opposition to this form of green energy, with critics claiming that they are inefficient, expensive and a major blight on the landscape.

A new Parliamentary Group has been set up to fight further wind farm blight and this has been joined by East Yorkshire MP Greg Knight.

The new group is chaired by the MP for Daventry, Chris Heaton-Harris, a Conservative.

Greg Knight said: “Our Ministers need to look at this policy again. Wind Farms are an inefficient technology, they add to the bills of consumers because of their huge subsidy and it is the wrong renewable for the UK. We need to change the policy.”

There are about 3,000 onshore wind turbines with a few hundred dotted around off the coast of Britain.

Mr Knight added: “Wind Farms generate less than two per cent of the nation’s power and only produce energy around 30 per cent of the time. When the wind is not blowing – or even blowing too fast as in the recent storms – other sources of electricity have to be used, mostly gas and coal.”

A pledge to cut emissions, written into law in last Labour government’s Climate Change Act, requires a major expansion of renewable energy development.

Forecasts have suggested that the requirement for more wind energy will add £280 to average energy bills by 2020.

A study in the Netherlands recently found that turning on and off gas power stations used as a back-up to cover spells when there is little wind, actually produces more carbon than a steady supply of energy from an efficient modern gas station.

Mr Knight says he wants to see more work done to harness wave power. He says there is as much as 27GW of electricity in the sea to be harnessed, -the equivalent of eight nuclear power stations – “a huge resource that is going untapped.”

“Marine energy is about harnessing the power of the sea – including big waves and tidal currents – to generate electricity. Analysis released by the Carbon Trust in May last year showed the UK could create over 68,000 jobs in this emerging sector.”

“Britain is an island, and we should be using our long shoreline rather than desecrating our beautiful landscape,” he says.

Knight Calls for More Time on Clock Change Bill

The Daylight Saving Bill was derailed by a small group of MPs on Friday last but pressure is growing on the government to give the bill a fair hearing. East Yorkshire MP Greg Knight has joined scores of other politicians and organisations calling for more parliamentary time to see it through.

The bill would mandate the government to conduct a comprehensive review of the costs and benefits of putting clocks forward an hour throughout the UK, resulting in lighter evenings every day of the year. If this concludes that a change would be beneficial, the government will run a three-year trial of the new system, subject to consent from the devolved governments of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

Even with huge support from over 140 MPs at Friday’s debate, less than ten politicians were able to block the bill by simply prolonging the debate.

“The will of the house was for the Daylight Saving Bill to proceed. Despite overwhelming support, a tiny minority employed wrecking tactics to scupper the bill. It is important the Government give the bill more time – so it can have the hearing it deserves” said Greg Knight MP.

The campaign for clock change has the backing of over 90 organisations working on an enormous range of issues, from sport and tourism to, road safety and environmental protection. “The support we saw on Friday is pretty unprecedented when it comes to a private members bill. It’s imperative the government gives the bill more time” added Daniel Vockins, Lighter Later campaign manager.

Success for Rural Mobile Campaign

Following a successful Parliamentary campaign involving East Yorkshire MP Greg Knight and others, Mr Knight today welcomed an announcement which will see mobile phone operators increase broadband coverage to an estimated 98% of the UK population.

Traditionally, up to 6 million people in Britain have been excluded from mobile coverage, particularly in rural areas because mobile phone companies were only obliged to cover 95 % of the population 90 % of the time.

Following pressure from Mr Knight and other MPs, from October 2011 onwards the Chancellor of the Exchequer has agreed to commit an extra 150 million pounds to boost mobile phone coverage in rural areas.

Now OFCOM have proposed that 98% or more of the population should receive 4G mobile broadband coverage. This means that across the UK millions who currently do not have a mobile signal will receive one, and that millions more will have their signal upgraded from a 2G ‘voice’ signal to a 4G signal, capable of carrying high speed data.

Mr Knight said, “This new investment will go a long way to bridging the digital divide and will mean that thousands of homes, schools, farms and businesses in East Yorkshire will get access to decent mobile and internet coverage for the first time”.

Mr Knight concluded: “In the 21st century geographical isolation should not mean digital isolation”.

MP Calls for More Variable Speed Limits

East Yorkshire MP Greg Knight is calling on the government to make greater use of variable speed limits.

Currently, in built-up areas, most speed limits are permanent and in operation for 24 hours a day. But Mr Knight says that this does not reflect the fact that the dangers which justify lower speed limits are often ‘transient’. The MP says that speed limits ‘should always be justifiable by the road conditions’ and believes that there is an overwhelming case for introducing variable speed limits in villages and towns.

‘Some well-meaning campaigners say that all villages and town centres should have permanent 20 mph limits, but this blanket approach is misguided and wrong,’ says the MP.

During Transport Questions Mr Knight told the House of Commons: ‘Is the Minister aware that often the danger that justifies a 20 mph limit is transient, such as outside a school, where the danger is present only briefly during the school day—in the morning, at lunch time and in the afternoon? As we already have the lowest speed limits in Europe, will the Minister encourage local authorities to make greater use of variable 20 mph limits so that once the danger has passed the limit will default to 30?

Replying, the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Transport (Mike Penning) said that the government are looking at Mr Knight’s suggestion. He also confirmed that mandatory variable speed limits ‘will continue to be used as part of the management of traffic on controlled and managed motorways on the strategic road network.’

Mr Knight added: ‘Variable speed limits have been a great success on our motorways and we should now be seeking to promote their greater use in rural areas. It is ridiculous to say that the danger of an accident occurring outside a school between a pedestrian and a vehicle is the same at midnight as it is at 4pm in the afternoon.’

‘The use of electronic flashing signs when the lower speed limit is in force would actually make our roads safer,’ the MP argues.

Most rural areas do not have nearby motorways or a comprehensive network of ‘A’ roads for passing traffic to use. If we are to ensure that places like the East Riding remain attractive to tourists and businesses alike, we need to ensure that we do not impede those who are already undertaking a long journey by unnecessarily adding to their journey times without just cause by the use of heavy-handed blanket speed limits.’

Mr Knight said the government should be prepared to contribute towards the cost of the electronic signage required.