Media Watch - May 7
Top Birmingham City Council Stories:
Chinese tycoons to fund key city schemes (Birmingham Post, Birmingham Mail) A consortium of Chinese and Taiwanese billionaires have reportedly expressed an early-stage interest in investing in major regeneration schemes such as Curzon Street, Birmingham Smithfield and UK Central.
Schools ‘should let boys choose to wear skirts’ (Independent, i) Schools should adopt ‘gender neutral’ uniform policies to avoid discrimination against LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender) pupils, Britain’s boarding schools have been told. Quotes Elly Barnes, an LGBT adviser with Birmingham City Council.
Mindless vandals attack park trees (Birmingham Mail) Police are hunting axe-wielding vandals who destroyed four cherry trees in Cannon Hill Park. Quotes council spokesperson saying incidents of this nature are rare but asking park users to report anything suspicious.
London tenants offered £7,000 to move to Midlands (Birmingham Post, Birmingham Mail) Wandsworth Council has secured eight properties in and around Birmingham and is offering its council tenants up to £7,000 to move into them.
Historic base for language centre ‘not viable’, says city council (Birmingham Post) Birmingham City Council is currently looking at options for the future of the Brasshouse Language Centre, in Sheepcote Street, including refurbishing the current building and looking at alternative venues. Quotes council spokesperson.
130 have council tax reduced after asking for review (Birmingham Mail) A total of 130 Birmingham householders managed to get their council tax bill reduced last year after asking for a review. They were out of a total of 500.
Work set to start on bank HQ (Birmingham Post) Construction of the new HSBC bank headquarters in Birmingham city centre will begin this summer after planners gave the scheme the go-ahead.
Council choir set for London gala (Birmingham Post) The Birmingham City Council choir is one of 15 selected from around the country to take part in the opening night of Voices Now 2015, a major festival taking place in London from May 8-10.
Regional Headlines:
BBC executives have pledged to ‘celebrate’ production from the Midlands, even though there are no plans to build a new Pebble Mill in Birmingham.
First time buyers need salaries of £29,000 to get onto the property ladder in the West Midlands – meaning the average worker falls more than £8,000 short, according to new research.
National Headlines:
Widespread coverage of election day.
Letters warning the media not to harass the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and their family have been handed out by police in a Norfolk village. The royal couple returned to Anmer Hall, their home on the Queen’s Sandringham Estate, with newborn Princess Charlotte on Wednesday.
The gang behind the Hatton Garden raid of 56 safe deposit boxes has “ruined the lives” and livelihoods of some of its victims, a loss adjuster has said. Rick Marchant said it was mainly small businesses that had been hit by the burglary at Hatton Garden Safe Deposit Ltd in London over Easter.
