This week:

I contacted the council’s transport team about concerns that have been raised with me about the Neuron E-Scooters.

• There is only supposed to be one rider per scooter and you must have a valid driving licence to use a rental scooter. I have had a number of reports of two people to a scooter and young teenagers using them. I spotted this myself and sent the date and time, location and direction of travel to Neuron. They were able to identify the account and suspend it and that licence will be blocked from re-registering for an account. If you spot any issues, please contact me.
• The scooters are supposed to be parked in designated zones but some are still being left in the wrong place, often blocking pavements. The team told me that there is a system for dealing with riders who do this: “The only way a user can park an e-scooter outside of a designated parking area is by abandoning the e-scooter. In doing so, the user is charged for an additional 10 minutes of riding time and is subject to our riding breach system. For a first breach, a user is issued a warning email, explaining to them what they did wrong and how to ride and park correctly for future trips. For a second breach, a user is issued with a two-week suspension, and a third breach is met with an indefinite suspension.” While I’m pleased that there is a system, I’m concerned that this is still happening too often and will continue to push for tighter controls.

I was contacted by a resident asking me to support the Women’s Aid’s ‘Motion for Change: Together Against Violence Towards Women and Girls (VAWG)’ which aims to help local councils address the root causes of VAWG and ensure survivors can access specialist support. I think this is a very important initiative. I have joined the Women’s Aids’ Domestic Abuse Councillor Network . I have also contacted Coun Lesley Storey, Cabinet Member for Children and Families, who is the lead councillor for VAWG about bringing the motion to council.

The Legal Team sent me an answer to the questions I asked on March 16 about the legal status of Leazes Park:

1. The legal status of Leazes Park (E.g. Is it owned by Newcastle City Council? Or by the City of Newcastle upon Tyne? Is there any legal distinction between the two?)
   “The freehold of the land is owned by the Council of the City of Newcastle upon Tyne.  That is the correct legal name of the Council although it is sometimes referred to as Newcastle City Council.  The majority of the land was leased to Urban Green but this has recently been surrendered.”
2. The process that would have to be followed for the disposal of a city asset
   “The process to be followed for disposal of a city asset would depend on the specific circumstances of any disposal but would be subject to the need for an appropriate decision setting out the details of the disposal and formally approving it.”

I have asked if there are any restrictions on the use of the land, since Leazes Park was created in response to a petition from the working people of Newcastle for ‘ready access to some open ground for the purpose of health and recreation’ and is on land that used to be part of the Town Moor.

I was contacted by a resident who is concerned about the impact of the Welfare Reform Bill. I disagree with the bill. I think its cruel and unnecessary and it’s shameful that the Labour Party, which was set up to fight for ordinary people, is putting it forward. Ten major charities have condemned the bill which they say will push between 300,000 and 400,000 people into poverty. I contacted Karen Kilgour, leader of Newcastle City Council, to ask what assessment has been done on the likely impact in our city.