INVESTMENT in lock gate modifications to the tune of £800,000 has demonstrated the "commitment and drive of Grimsby to be part of the renewable industry moving forward".

The ringing endorsement of the town's can-do attitude came from the latest entrant to the port's burgeoning operations and maintenance sector, E.on's project manager Dave Moseley.

Having heard how North East Lincolnshire Council had poured £500,000 into works that will allow larger vessels to negotiate the entrance to Port of Grimsby East – he vowed to work with local companies as Humber Gateway wind farm is built, and then operated, by people working out of the town.

Mr Moseley said: "We are very happy to establish our operations base here, which we are just starting to build.

"We are really pleased to be part of Grimsby, a nucleus of operations bases for a number of offshore wind farms. We are bringing up to 50 jobs, investment is coming in to the port, and along with that, we will be looking for services and suppliers from around Grimsby.

"We will be holding open days to meet with future suppliers – local businesses – to see what we can do. We look forward to a very long future working in Grimsby."

The confirmation that contractors were on site on North Quay yesterday was greeted warmly by the gathered dignitaries.

Illustrated here for the first time, it is the first base to be created in the port's allocated enterprise zone.

Mr Moseley said it will be built by summer, in readiness for the bulk of the offshore construction, just a few miles off Spurn.

Grimsby Fish Dock Enterprises has supported the works, and also invested £150,000 into securing E.on's site.

Including the £500,000 from the Change programme, it represents an investment of well over £1 million to improve the gates and net E.on.

Martyn Boyers, chief executive of GFDE, said: "The increase in offshore renewable activity represents an opportunity for business, for the community and for the creation of jobs. Potentially there is a lot more to come.

"Ports need to progress and this deal demonstrates collaboration. It is good for E.on, it is good for ABP and it is great for Grimsby."

A TEARAWAY teenage girl is the latest Grimsby troublemaker to be given an antisocial behaviour order – at the age of just 14.

Alexandra Lawlor's behaviour had already become so alarming, despite her tender years, that an Asbo was needed to stamp down on her antics, a court heard.

The two-year order was imposed on Lawlor at Grimsby Youth Court, where magistrates heard about her catalogue of misbehaviour.

Lawlor, of Cabourne Road, Nunsthorpe, admitted public order and criminal damage offences.

The court heard that Lawlor was involved in a disturbance on January 22 in which she and another girl jumped up and down on beds in the Dunelm Mill store in Victoria Street, Grimsby.

They hurled a wheelchair around near the entrance to the store and shouted: "Come and fight."

The police were alerted to deal with them and both girls ran off. They were arrested nearby.

The criminal damage offence happened on December 11 and involved Lawlor and her friend entering Tesco in Yarborough Road, Grimsby.

She became verbally abusive to staff there and pushed them while the police were being called. She tried to prevent the call being made by attempting to grab the telephone.

During the disturbance, Lawlor damaged a display of crisps and threw two packets onto the floor.

She had previously been banned from the supermarket because of her antisocial behaviour.

Lawlor asked for two other public order offences, on December 6 and 10, to be taken into consideration.

Prosecutor Martin Howarth told the court that it was unusual to apply for an Asbo on a girl so young but that it was necessary because of her behaviour.

Gary Bulbeck, representing the girl, did not oppose the application. The youth offending team also supported the Asbo as a way of helping to keep close tabs on Lawlor's behaviour.

The magistrates told the teenager: "This behaviour is unusual for a 14-year-old. You are becoming a big nuisance and are even making people fearful. The issuing of an Asbo is a serious matter."

Lawlor was given an eight-week 8pm to 7am curfew, nine months' supervision and a 36-day activity requirement, including taking part in the "Prison Me No Way" programme.

After the hearing, PC Jenny Kerrawn, a police neighbourhood beat manager, said: "Alex causes enormous problems in and around the area where she lives and also in parts of Grimsby town centre.

"She causes problems all over the place and can be quite difficult to deal with.

"For a child of her age to behave so irresponsibly and irrationally is unusual, but we now have the means to change her.

"If she fails, I would urge all members of the community to let us know and we will deal with her."

When approached by the Grimsby Telegraph at her home yesterday, Alexandra's mother said her daughter was "just a kid messing about, showing off to her mates, which got out of hand."

She said she had provided her mobile number to the shops where Alexandra had caused trouble and would come straight away if her daughter turned up there, adding: "What more can I do?"

Indicating that she didn't want to comment further, she told the reporter: "Just print it. I don't care what people think."

THE legal battle by the Grimsby Telegraph to publicly name a dangerous sex offender has made it into print as a major training aid for other newspapers.

The case centres around Gary Allen, jailed for sexually assaulting and attacking sex workers just months after being cleared of the murder of a prostitute.

The Telegraph's legal battle to publicly name Allen as a warning to women in the town has been published in the latest edition of McNae's Essential Law For Journalists, the legal training bible for all journalists.

It was his move to Grimsby in April 2010 after being released from prison that led to a long legal fight by the Telegraph to name him and publish his picture to highlight the danger living in our community.

In doing so, the Telegraph was taken to the High Court and accused of being in breach of the Contempt of Court Act.

The Telegraph's deputy editor, Michelle Hurst, said: "I worked for several months on the case, initially finding ways round court orders to name Allen, and then to defend our right to publish those details before a High Court judge – at considerable expense.

"Readers will remember that Allen claimed we had breached his human rights by publishing his name in relation to a Sexual Offences Prevention Order (SOPO) that stopped him from approaching prostitutes. To have the case printed in McNae's is one of the highest honours for a journalist, and will hopefully help other publications realise that there are ways to defend our right to publish matters of huge public importance, despite what the results of the Leveson Inquiry might bring."

The High Court judge backed the Telegraph at the time, throwing out Allen's claims and vindicating our coverage.

Allen left Grimsby soon after the publication, but was arrested days later for breaking his SOPO and attacking a police officer and returned to prison.

It is not known where he now lives.

IT'S nearly Mother's Day so what better time to tell us why your mum means so much to you?

We have teamed up with St Andrew's Hospice for the Mum Of The Year competition and heartfelt nominations have been flooding in.

If your super mum deserves recognition, then it is simple to get involved – all you have to do is send in a photograph of her, and tell us why you are nominating her. It couldn't be easier.

Finalists will appear in our Mum Of The Year supplement in April, and you can vote for your favourite by text.

There are £400 worth of prizes to be won.

To nominate your mum, simply send in or e-mail about 150 words, with your name, your mum's name and her photograph, and your telephone number to: Caroline Whelpton, Mum Of The Year Competition, Grimsby Telegraph, 80 Cleethorpe Road, Grimsby, DN31 3EH, or e-mail caroline.whelpton@gsmg.co.uk

Usual Telegraph rules apply.

St Andrew's Hospice is pleased to sponsor Mum of The Year – "making each day count" for families at St Andrew's Hospice, Peaks Lane, Grimsby. You can contact the centre on 01472 350908 or visit www.standrewshospice.com. You can donate online or follow them on facebook and twitter.

Registered Charity Number 1011117 (England)

"WHEN we win a game and it's that electric atmosphere that you get at Blundell Park, the players come off and are absolutely buzzing with the fact that the fans have got behind them."

That's the message from Grimsby Town joint boss Rob Scott as the Mariners' title push steps up a notch against Kidderminster Harriers this afternoon (3pm).

The co-manager appreciates the advantage a BP crowd can generate as the five-way battle for the sole automatic promotion spot hots up.

"We need as many fans to come to the games as possible," Scott told the Telegraph.

"And when they come to the game, we need them to get behind the team – which they do to a large degree – but we need as many as we can getting behind us with the run-in that we've got.

"We'll need it because, in respect of the amount of games that we've got coming up, it's a tough run-in.

"Every bit of encouragement that the players can get will certainly help.

"We'll need all the help we can get if we're going to achieve our aims this season."

Scott continued: "At the game against Ebbsfleet, there was a good turnout. But there's still that expectancy of us to beat the Ebbsfleets, Braintrees, Dartfords and Hydes. People walk away thinking 'ah well we would have won that anyway'.

"It's not as easy as that and this season has shown that with how tight it is at the top of the league.

"Yes, we're Grimsby Town and yes we're a big club.

"But although we're striving hard to change that, we're Conference managers, they are a Conference players, and Grimsby Town is a Conference club."

IT WAS recently announced that wrestling will be put in a vote-off category with 20 other Olympic sports to be axed from the Olympics, as of 2020.

With this announcement, however, there was no reason or explanation as to why it could be banished.

It has had no problems and there were no signs showing that wrestling could be axed, it has totally come from out of the blue.

As a wrestling mark (fan) myself, I was furious about this decision. It left me wondering if it is what the people want in the Olympics or what is good for business.

Wrestling, as an Olympic sport, doesn't bring as much money as other sports, eg running, cycling and swimming, do.

The reason it is being pushed away could be: they are losing money from it and not enough people are watching it as they would have liked.

For me, this only means one thing: advertise it and sell it to the audience more. Olympic wrestling lacks advertisement so people aren't interested.

Professional wrestling companies have, whilst trying to get it better known and make it more entertaining, brought a bad reputation to the sport.

Professional wrestling is staged and is made for entertainment to show what an amazing sport it is.

This has had an adverse effect, though. It has made people brand wrestling with names like "staged", "fake" etc, and these names are really hard to shrug off once they're there.

After watching professional wrestling, some people then go on to think that all wrestling is boring and the reason it is staged is to try to hide the fact it isn't entertaining when, actually, it is there to highlight how entertaining it is.

There are plenty of wrestlers all over the planet as wrestling is always being competed in.

There are sports that are lacking athletes and need competitors, so surely these are the sports that need to be gone because people obviously don't enjoy competing in them?

Some would say that taking wrestling out of the Olympics is similar to taking the running events out of the Olympics as they are all original sports.

If a running event was taken from the Olympics there would be uproar because running is renowned as the main Olympic sport.

Wrestling is also a main Olympic sport, but it doesn't seem to have the same cult even though it should.

Some of the people I look up to aspire to wrestle in the Olympics, so without the event, this could mean that the number of young wrestlers (that are, effectively, role models for children) could decrease.

Every event in the previous Olympics was aired on television. This leads me to think that the decision was possibly made in regards to the viewing figures of each event.

Wrestling obviously didn't have as many viewing figures and this then put them into a category of sports not being watched.

The ridiculous thing is that wrestling could have been on at the same time as swimming, cycling or running (the sports that are constantly advertised and have lots of funding), so people tune into these events instead because these are the sports billed as the "main" ones.

Why should the number of people watching a sport for a couple of Olympics affect its massive tradition and history?

There are some countries that have millions of wrestlers and it is even seen as a primary sport in some places.

This means that these countries are going to be like fish out of water when wrestling is taken from the Olympics. It's going from being the most important sport in their life to a non-existent Olympic sport.

I understand that wrestling isn't everybody's "cup of tea", however, if sports like wrestling keep getting axed from the Olympics, surely it is going to eventually lead to sports like gymnastics, running, cycling and diving getting axed?

We need to take a stand and back our traditional sports before the Olympics loses its glory altogether!

MORE should be done to tackle the "scandal" of fuel poverty.

That was the view of local councillors who are urging the Government to make homes more energy efficient and to rein in soaring gas and electricity bills.

A motion put forward by Labour councillor Ros James gained unanimous support at Thursday night's full council meeting – although not before the two main parties had blamed each other for causing the crisis.

As we revealed in December, around 20 per cent of households (more than 13,500) in North East Lincolnshire are living in fuel poverty – defined as spending more than 10 per cent of their income on keeping their homes warm.

Councillor James (Lab, Heneage) told the meeting that benefit cuts being imposed by the Government would only make the situation worse and said the huge profits made by energy companies were "unjust" and "immoral".

She described the situation as "a scandal in a supposedly developed nation" and added: "We desperately need to do something before it gets any worse."

Her motion asked councillors to support an Early Day Motion (EDM) put forward by Conservative MP Peter Aldous entitled Reducing Fuel Bills Through Energy Efficiency and to support the Energy Bill Revolution campaign calling on the Government to use revenues from carbon taxes to make homes more energy efficient.

Councillor Philip Jackson (Con, Waltham) supported the motion but said he would not be taking lessons on energy policy from members of the Labour group.

He said: "The reason we have such high energy prices in this country is that during the time of the last Labour Government energy policy was neglected for over a decade and we now find ourselves approaching an energy crisis."

However, Councillor Chris Shaw (Lab, Sidney Sussex) blamed the Thatcher Government of the 1980s for destroying Britain's coal industry and making us reliant on gas supplies from overseas.

He said: "A real sensible long-term policy – when those countries saw we had no resources of our own they hiked the prices up and there's nothing we can do about it."

GRIMSBY Town bosses admit that letting Greg Pearson join one of their main title rivals was a calculated risk.

The striker linked up with this afternoon's opponents, Kidderminster, on loan last month.

And, although the 27-year-old won't be able to face his parent club today at Blundell Park, he has already played his part in Harriers' surge up the table.

A goal off the bench on his debut helped Steve Burr's men to a big win at Hyde, and the former Burton Albion man has been involved in every game since.

A superb run of results has seen the Worcestershire club leapfrog Town in the standings.

But joint boss Paul Hurst said it was 'only right' to let a player who is out of contract in the summer – and out of the first-team picture – try to earn a deal elsewhere.

"There is always a slight concern there and we could have been extremely selfish and said no," explained Hurst.

"But it wasn't quite working out for Greg here and we felt it was only right to let him move.

"He came off the bench and scored on his debut for them and has been involved regularly.

"But as long as we're comfortable with what's here then we're not going to lose any sleep."

Pearson joined the Mariners last summer after being released by the Brewers, but injuries disrupted his time in North East Lincolnshire and he made just seven league starts for Town.

"At the start of the season we weren't really firing up front and weren't playing particularly well as the players got to know each other," added Hurst.

"Greg had a really good game against Mansfield for our first victory, pictured, but then the next game he didn't really look fit and had to come off.

"Then he got a knock coming back from that injury as well and had to bide his time once we'd brought Ross (Hannah) in."

"He played a couple of games, but we wanted to get Ross back, and Greg just found himself down the pecking order."

The co-manager was keen to wish the forward well for the future, if not this season!

"He needs a fresh start," said Hurst. "He's nothing but a good pro – he works hard, he does work in the gym off his own back and he wants to be playing.

"Opportunities here would have been few and far between because of the quality we've brought into the team.

"We haven't got a bad word to say about him. Sometimes it just doesn't work out and he won't be the first player that's come to a club with a good record but had to move on again.

"Apart from his efforts to get Kidderminster promoted, we all hope it does work out for Greg."

A raft of speed limit reductions across North East Lincolnshire have been backed by councillors this week.

The council's speed limit select committee has made seven recommendations which will now go before the regeneration and environment scrutiny panel.

Local Government Reporter Simon Faulkner outlines the proposed changes

Reduce the speed limit through Aylesby village from 40 to 30mph: The committee backed the proposal to cut the speed limit along Main Road to 30mph. However, it voted to keep the 40mph zone on Nooking Lane, to the west of the village, in place. John Spilan, the owner of Manor Farm, Aylesby, said he had "no objection" to the proposal – but he saw no need for it.

Reduce the speed limit on the B1210 in Healing from 40 to 30mph: Councillors agreed to extend the existing 30mph zone east on Great Coates Road to near the bus stop and west on Stallingborough Road to the junction with Wells Road. Although no-one from the Parish Council was available for comment at the time of going to press, it had given evidence in support of dropping the speed limit in line with the recommendations as part of the public consultation.

Reduce the speed limit on the B1210 between Healing and Great Coates from 60 to 40mph: Councillor Philip Jackson (Con, Waltham) said he was initially opposed to this proposal, but decided to support it because otherwise there would be several changes of speed limit on a relatively short stretch of road. He said: "Frequent changes in speed limits can be confusing for motorists." Great Coates resident Nicola Maasdam, said: "Because there were five speed limit changes between Great Coates and Healing, if they make it a bit more uniform, it makes it easier for drivers to adhere to the speed limit. "I hope it will also reduce the speed of traffic approaching Great Coates roundabout, as it is really difficult to get out of Great Coates because of the speed of the traffic from the right."

Retain the 60mph speed limit on the A1136 between the Great Coates roundabout and the Great Coates Interchange: The committee rejected the proposal to cut the limit on this section to 50mph. Great Coates resident Nicola Maasdam, said: "I am pleased they are keeping this road at 60mph up to the interchange. I don't see any reason for that to be lowered."

Reduce the speed limit along the A18 Barton Street from 60mph to 50mph between Laceby Top roundabout and the county boundary at Ludborough, with a 40mph section between the Beelsby and Hatcliffe junctions: The committee voted 3-2 in support of this proposal. Councillor Jackson agreed with reducing the speed limit to 50mph between Laceby Top and Ashby Top, but suggested that the 60mph limit should be retained south of that. He said: "The road straightens out considerably, the sightlines become much better, and I don't think there are the same risks involved as there are on the other stretch of the A18." However, Councillor Terry Thurogood (Lab, Croft Baker) argued that for consistency's sake a single 50mph limit would be better. Councillor Jackson also put forward a number of other safety measures, including adding solid white lines in the middle of the road to deter overtaking and warning signs on stretches of the road liable to flooding. This was supported by the rest of the committee. Jason Abrams, the club professional at Laceby Manor Golf Club, said from a safety point of view, the changes would be welcome – but only if they were enforced. He said: "If they are taking the speed limits down, it is good from a safety point of view – especially for people coming in and out of the golf club. "There are a lot of blind entrances and exits, but how people enforce it will be the key to whether it makes a difference or not. "People will always do the speed they want to do."

Reduce the speed limit on the A180 between the Pyewipe and Lockhill roundabouts from 70 to 50mph: The committee voted 4-1 in support of this reduction. Councillor Jackson said that most of the collisions on this stretch of road occurred at the roundabouts, where the speed limit was already 30mph. He said that a "substantial group of drivers" would not find a 50mph limit "credible" and as a result there would be a low level of compliance. Councillor Thurogood said the problem was the difference in speeds, suggesting that drivers would enter the roundabouts slower if the speed limit was cut to 50mph. Councillor Karl Wilson (Lab, Heneage) added that the sections between the roundabouts were short that they required harsh acceleration and braking in order for vehicles to reach 70mph. Michael Clarke, of Concrete Gardens, in Flour Square, said he used the road "three or four times a day" and had no objection to the change. He said: "It will add about a minute to the average journey and, if it improves safety, it can only be a good thing. "Okay, it is a duel carriageway, but it is in a built up area and it's only a short stretch. There are no barriers either."

Reduce the speed limit on "residential access roads" in the East Marsh and Sidney Sussex wards from 30 to 20mph and introduce traffic calming measures: The committee voted 4-1 in favour of this proposal. Councillor Jackson questioned whether traffic calming measures would be an effective use of "limited resources." He said: "A lot of the roads we are looking at are very narrow and it is very difficult to drive at more than 20mph on them anyway. I'm concerned we are going to end up spending substantial amounts of money and not getting any significant benefits in terms of road safety." However, Councillor Thurogood said that the evidence from Hull City Council showed conclusively that "traffic calming saves lives." Councillor Wilson said that traffic calming didn't necessarily mean speed humps, adding: "It might be a sign in the road. It doesn't have to be a speed hump or a chicane." East Marsh ward councillor Steve Beasant, said: "I am over the moon that, at last, they are taking some action. To me, 20mph is plenty and it will not slow traffic, as sometimes it is slowed anyway. Getting from A to B will be just the same, but 20mph will save lives and I am concerned about children. That's all that matters to me." Sidney Sussex ward councillor Chris Shaw said: said: "We are in favour of reducing the speed reductions within Sidney Sussex, but we would also like to see some streets become one way. People drive both sides of the street which is a risk, but they also park down them, too."

AN ARSONIST, jailed for three years after turning a cuddly toy into a flaming weapon, has failed to convince top judges he was too harshly punished.

Duane O'Pray, 21, of Firsby Crescent, Grimsby, soaked the soft toy in lighter fluid before setting it on fire and hurling it at mum Becky Murphy as she opened the door to her home last August.

He pleaded guilty at Grimsby Crown Court in October to arson and breaching a community order and conditional discharge and was sent to prison.

He appealed in London this week, but Lord Justice Pitchford, Mrs Justice Sharp and Sir Geoffrey Grigson said there was nothing wrong with the length of the sentence.

The Court of Appeal heard O'Pray went to Mrs Murphy's home in Coningsby Drive, Grimsby, intending to scare a member of her family with the flaming toy. When she answered the door, he panicked and threw it, before turning and walking away from the scene "casually", Sir Geoffrey said.

Mrs Murphy, who described it as "like a ball of flame", suffered only slight singeing to her arm. Her two-and-a-half year old child had been in the house at the time.

O'Pray already had a string of convictions to his name, including for carrying a weapon, assaults, criminal damage and battering his own mother.

The sentencing judge handed him the prison term for arson and no separate punishment for breaching the court orders, which had been imposed for earlier offences.

His lawyers argued that three years might have been appropriate if the offence had been reckless arson, but not the less serious offence he committed.

Sir Geoffrey said: "What we have to consider is whether a sentence of three years for this offence is manifestly excessive – we are not persuaded that it was.

"This was a serious offence of arson. The appellant has a bad record and the learned judge didn't impose any separate penalty for the other offences.

"In the circumstances, we uphold the sentence of three years and this application must be dismissed."

THE eyes of the world's media were once again focused on Grimsby yesterday, as we cleared up the controversy surrounding "the slip-up that never was" from the Duchess of Cambridge.

After video footage showing Kate did not reveal the sex of her baby – captured by reader Lisa Hewson, 32, of Healing – was posted on www.thisisgrimsby, the newsroom was inundated with calls from across the globe.

As exclusively revealed in the Grimsby Telegraph, the video shows the Duchess accepting a teddy from Diane Burton, saying: "Oh, is this for us? Thank you very much. That is very sweet of you."

Previously, a media frenzy had ensued after Grimsby woman Sharon Cook mistakenly believed she had heard the Duchess say: "Thank you, I will take that for my d..."

At the time of going to press, the footage clearing up the issue – which can still be watched online – had been watched 14,034 times.

And, as calls and e-mails flooded in from journalists as far afield as Italy and America, the British national press also picked up on the story.

By yesterday afternoon, both the London Evening Standard and the Daily Express were running our scoop on their websites.

BBC national journalist Josephine McDermott (@JosMcDermott) also tweeted: "Grimsby Telegraph triumphs with Duchess of Cambridge 'not daughter' footage" – sending the link to her 706 followers.

Meanwhile, Sharon's granddaughter said her gran planned to personally apologise to the Royal couple.

In a comment posted on thisisgrimsby.co.uk, she said: "She is appalled with the way this has got out of hand and would like me to clarify that although she has been offered money for her story, alongside interviews with multiple television and radio shows around the world – at all hours of the day and night – she has rejected all offers and wants nothing further to do with this story.

"She is personally sending a letter of apology to Kate to show her sympathy for any distress caused."

Mrs Cook herself was unavailable for comment.

A WARNING has been issued for snow across Grimsby later today.
 
Met Office have issued a yellow warning for snow across Yorkshire and Humberside with around 5cm expected to fall on higher ground.

A spokesperson for the Met Office, said: "A lot of falling snow will melt on the ground, though some accumulations of 5cm or more here could not be ruled out by late evening."

Any snow should clear by tonight but temperature are set to remain around -1 degrees.

Tomorrow should feel increasingly cold with a brisk easterly wind. Remaining largely cloudy with occasional wintry showers.

A broken down train is causing disruption near Scunthorpe this afternoon (Saturday, March 9)

Because of this, trains between Scunthorpe and Cleethorpes may be delayed by up to 30 minutes.

These delays will continue until further notice.

Anthony Malbon scored twice as Kidderminster secured a vital 3-1 win at fellow title chasers Grimsby.

Grimsby striker Ross Hannah's header was well saved by Daniel Lewis early on but it was the visitors, unbeaten in six, who took the lead.

Malbon lost his marker before applying a clinical side-footed finish to Mickey Demetriou's cross after 32 minutes.

The Harriers broke away on the stroke of half-time to double their advantage as Michael Gash tucked away Lee Vaughan's pull back to grab his first goal since arriving from Cambridge on loan.

The Mariners came back into the game five minutes after the interval when defender Ian Miller showed a striker's instinct to find the top corner with a right-footed strike.

But Steve Burr's side wrapped up the points in the 77th minute when Malbon tapped in substitute Danny Pilkington's centre.