City of Lincoln Council

The Labour leader of City of Lincoln Council, Ric Metcalfe, has held his seat in the Glebe ward.

This was after a bundle check - which is a quicker re-count in groups of votes.

So far, out of the 11 wards up for election on Thursday, the Conservatives have three seats and Labour have five:

Election fever is hotting up on both sides of the Humber.

Hull has seen campaign visits during the campaign from the Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer and the Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey.

Labour remains the dominant political force in Hull and the party runs the city council, but the Lib Dems have gained ground in recent years and form the opposition with 24 seats to Labour’s 31 seats.

The Conservatives will defend North East Lincolnshire, an area that includes the parliamentary constituency of Great Grimsby - one of the 'red wall' seats snatched by the Tories from Labour in the 2019 general election.

Lincolnshire County Council will see an all-out election with every seat up for grabs, where the Conservatives will defend a large majority.

One third of council seats will be contested in the City of Lincoln, where Labour is presently in control.

Three candidates are contesting the race to become Humberside Police & Crime Commissioner. Labour's Keith Hunter is the current PCC.

Five candidates are on the ballot paper in the contest for Lincolnshire Police & Crime Commissioner. The role is currently held by Conservative Marc Jones.

The results for a number of local elections that took place yesterday are due back later.

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Counting is under way across Yorkshire and Lincolnshire for the local elections, the mayoral elections and the police and crime commissioner elections, with BBC reporters at many counts.

We're expecting declarations at the following council counts today:

• Barnsley
• Doncaster
• Sheffield
• Hull
• Kirklees
• Wakefield
• Lincolnshire
• Lincoln
• North East Lincolnshire

The North Yorkshire Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner result is also expected back this afternoon.

Election results this year will come over days rather than a huge return overnight as traditionally happens.

This has been prompted by social distancing and safety around coronavirus.

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Above is the scene at Lincoln's County Assembly Rooms where the count is taking place for Lincolnshire County, City of Lincoln and Police and Crime Commissioner elections.

Karen Lee, below, is the former Labour MP for Lincoln. She lost her seat in 2019's general election.

She's standing for a seat in the Ermine and Cathedral division of Lincolnshire County Council.

Counters and candidates are separated by screens and candidates are only allowed one supporter with them to keep numbers to a minimum.

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Three men have been released on bail after a fight at an arboretum involving a group of about 15 people, one thought to be armed with a machete, police say.

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Officers were called to the Lincoln Arboretum on Monks Road shortly after 17:30 on Sunday, according to Lincolnshire Police.

Three local men aged 18, 19 and 22 were arrested on suspicion of affray, police said. All have since been released on bail.

Insp Julia Baker said: "At least 15 teenagers were involved in scuffles in and around the arboretum.

"We received reports one male was armed with a machete so taser armed officers and the dog unit were dispatched. It was a group of youths that were known to each other.

"We had to lockdown the arboretum to protect people, so that innocent members of the public weren't injured."

Insp Sarah Edwards added: “It’s such a shame we saw an incident like this, where a large group of young people were essentially fighting, shouting, and generally causing worry and upset to others in the area.

"Especially at a time when other members of the public are just starting to enjoy a little more freedom in outdoor spaces because some Covid restrictions have started to lift.

"We will make sure those involved are held to account."

A quarter of all hospitals beds in Lincolnshire are being taken up by patients being treated for Covid-19.

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Across Lincoln County Hospital and Boston Pilgrim Hospital, 245 patients have tested positive for coronavirus.

The chief executive of United Lincolnshire Hospitals Trust (ULHT), Andrew Morgan, says "The numbers we are getting through are far, far larger than wave one and then that is sadly reflected in the number of deceased patients."

This year's Christmas lights have been officially turned on in Lincoln City Centre.

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They were switched on last night, but there was no big celebration.

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The decision to cancel the official "switch-on" event was taken earlier this year by City of Lincoln Council.

The authority said the event draws large crowds which would make social distancing impossible.

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Disagreement over the future of Lincoln's Usher Gallery appears to be deepening.

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Lincolnshire County Council wants to hold wedding ceremonies in the city centre art gallery, claiming it will make the site more viable and save money.

But the City of Lincoln Council is against the plans - and offered the City Hall as an alternative in a bid to find a way forward.

City council leader Ric Metcalfe says he's deeply disappointed.

Mr Metcalfe said: “We understand the county council wishes to use the Usher Gallery as a wedding venue and we remain willing to explore the potential for this, but at a scale that does not detract from the building continuing to function as primarily an arts venue across both floors of the building.”

But county council leader Martin Hill says the offer doesn't solve the problem that the gallery is under-used.

"The big problem we've got there is that not many people go to the Usher Gallery at present. It's underused and has been for many years, so there is a need to look at doing things differently."

Men with their trousers down, youths leaping between rooftops and people spitting and throwing items from the roof are just some of the incidents which have recently taken place at Lincoln’s council-owned car parks, according to a new report.

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The report includes a full breakdown of 706 incidents which took place across the facilities between January and December last year and 211 incidents between January and 15 July this year.

They include:

• Two males caught on the stairwell with their trousers down
• A teenage girl sliding down a fourth floor bannister who fell off and landed on the second floor

• Seven youths causing antisocial behaviour, including throwing a shopping trolley
• An incident involving youths throwing manhole covers

Documents before councillors say antisocial behaviour issues have "manifested across the city centre and have become a recurring problem, particularly within our multi-storey car parks".

City of Lincoln’s Police Scrutiny Committee will next week examine plans for a Public Space Protection Order aimed at giving the council and its officers further tools to tackle antisocial behaviour in the city's car parks.

If given the go-ahead, the order will cover the Lucy Tower (pictured), Broadgate and Lincoln Central multi-storey car parks.

Council bosses say a £1m government grant intended to help the authority cope with the impact of coronavirus is "devastating" and up to £4m short of what is needed.

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City of Lincoln Council has been awarded £1,050,718 out of a £3.6 billion government pot.

However it predicts it will need between £4-5 million to recover from the pressures on income, including car parking, rents, planning and leisure, and a predicted drop in council tax and business rates.

Council leader Ric Metcalfe said without further funding some council services may be stopped.

"To be allocated little more than £1 million at this difficult time is truly devastating for the city," he said.

“If more funding does not become available, we will be forced to look closely at the services we provide and it is inevitable that some of these will have to stop in order for us to balance the books."

Councils in Lincolnshire are to receive an extra £28m to help them respond to the coronavirus pandemic.

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It's to be spent on services such as social care and housing the homeless.

The extra cash has come at a time when councils are facing a potential loss of millions from things such as car parks and leisure centre.

This fresh allocation of government help brings the total amount so far allocated to Lincolnshire to £43m.

More than £27m has been awarded to 980 businesses by the City of Lincoln Council to help firms during the coronavirus pandemic.

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The money has been made available to businesses in the retail, hospitality and leisure sector via the authority's business rates relief scheme.

It comes on top of more than £16.5m awarded to 1,317 businesses through the government's Business Grant Funding scheme

Council leader Ric Metcalfe said: "We've got a terrific concern about what the medium to long term effects of all of this are going to be on jobs and business in Lincoln.

"We're very concerned as a council, that's why we're doing everything we possibly can to ensure as many businesses survive."

City of Lincoln Council has confirmed almost 500 businesses in Lincoln have been given a share of £5m to help during the coronavirus pandemic.

Officials say the payments should arrive in the next three days and that it's now looking at a further 300 applications for the government cash.

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Quote Message: A huge effort has been made by our team and we are proud to be supporting so many businesses at this difficult time. Businesses are the lifeblood of the city, employing thousands of people, and we want to ensure their future is safe. from Ric Metcalfe City of Lincoln Council Leader

A huge effort has been made by our team and we are proud to be supporting so many businesses at this difficult time. Businesses are the lifeblood of the city, employing thousands of people, and we want to ensure their future is safe.

City of Lincoln Council has launched a telephone befriending service to help those in isolation feel more socially connected.

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The service aims to provide friendly conversation to vulnerable people that may be experiencing reduced social interactions during self-isolation.

Quote Message: Following the outbreak, staff in many departments across the council have stepped out of their regular roles to quickly create this brand new service which will offer vital support and reassurance to many who are feeling the social effects of self-isolation. from Rosanne Kirk City of Lincoln Council

Following the outbreak, staff in many departments across the council have stepped out of their regular roles to quickly create this brand new service which will offer vital support and reassurance to many who are feeling the social effects of self-isolation.

If you would like to refer yourself to the befriending service, you can contact the signposting team on 01522 873461/873374.

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A decision is expected to be made later on whether to allow a £28m animal rendering plant to be built at Norton Disney, near Lincoln.

Lincoln Proteins wants to relocate to Villa Farm in Norton Disney from its current site in Skellingthorpe.

The plant would process animal by-products using heat and pressure, but local people have expressed concerns about the potential for smell and impact on traffic and wildlife.

The company says it's committed to protecting wildlife and archaeology, as well as managing odours.

But planning officers have recommended the plans are refused based on the impact of an industrial development on the countryside and harm to local heritage.

There are also concerns about the impact on the local bat population.