Media Watch – Sept 18
Top Birmingham City Council Stories
The Brummie Inquiry (BBC) Cllr Waseem Zaffar interviewed about the first session of the ‘What Makes Us Brummie?’ inquiry.
Warning after evidence of mice and cockroaches found in HMP Birmingham kitchens (Birmingham Mail) Bosses at Winson Green prison were forced to clean up the jail kitchens or face them being shut down after health chiefs spotted evidence of MICE. Council environmental health officers visited the prison earlier this year following a complaint from an inmate about poor hygiene.
Families’ fears on new planning regs (Birmingham Mail) Government proposals to relax planning regulations surrounding home extensions could have a massive effect on a student-dominated Birmingham suburn, it has been claimed. Residents in Bournbrook and Selly Oak are backed by Cllr Karen McCarthy.
Council staff went to 100m Olympic final (Birmingham Mail) A city councillor and two senior officers enjoyed a slap-up trip to the Olympic 100m final in London last month, it has emerged.
New homes plan to help create jobs (Birmingham Mail) Controversial plans to build 70,000 new homes in Birmingham will create jobs and help tackle ‘the biggest housing crisis in a generation’, City MP Jack Dromey has claimed.
Keeping you on road to health (Birmingham Mail) Roadside message boards are being used to reach 500,000 people each day in a new pilot scheme in Birmingham. The signs at 28 key locations around the city are being utilised in a joint initiative by NHS Public Health for Birmingham and the Council.
Regional Headlines
‘Predictive policing’ to stop crime
A method of analysing patterns of criminal activity such as burglary is under way in the West Midlands.
Housing waiting lists rise to 180,000 in West Midlands
The number of people on waiting lists for social housing in the West Midlands region has risen to 180,000, according to the National Housing Federation.
National Headlines
Doctor complaints up 23% in year
The number of complaints made to the General Medical Council about doctors has risen 23% in the past year, the regulator says.
Fire kills two adults and child
Two adults and a child are killed in an early morning house fire in Cwmbran, south Wales, and a man is arrested on suspicion of arson.
