This week:

• I supported residents on the Quayside who were concered about noise and smell from food stalls at the Quayside Market. This is a recent issue that seemed to be caused by a change in the layout of the market and the residents had also contacted the Markets Team. The Markets Team agreed to some changes to the layout, which should improve the situation.
• I was also contacted by another Quayside resident who had had some bins from the market left near her property. I informed the Markets Team and arranged for the council’s refuse team to collect the bins.
• I had discussions with the Legal and Licensing Team about the withdrawal of my licensing objections (see Weekly Update 23 ) They asked me to rephrase my withdrawal and remove the references to my concerns about the applications.
• I sent a letter to the King of Saudi Arabia asking for clemency for Abdullah Al Derazi, a young man sentenced to death for alleged offences committed when he was still a child. I worked with the Newcastle Greens (Coun Nick Hartley drafted the letter) and Newcastle Independents on this and several other councillors signed it too.