
Scarborough emergency care centre to open after five-month delay
Mr Morritt said: "Our priority has always been to ensure we do not move in until we are confident the building is safe and functional for staff and patients."I am delighted to say we have received assurance from our contractors that this is now the case."The urgent and emergency care centre was set to almost double the existing space at Scarborough Hospital and was the largest capital investment by the trust, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service. Mr Morritt said the handover of the building was scheduled for the end of this month, "allowing for a planned and phased approach to final testing, intensive cleaning, and occupation"."We are now working towards starting the clinical moves in the last week of April, with a view to being fully operational at the start of May."
Listen to highlights from North Yorkshire on BBC Sounds, catch up with the latest episode of Look North.
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BBC News
4 hours ago
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Scotsman
17-07-2025
- Scotsman
Availability of disposable vapes in Edinburgh risks creating 'black market' says MSP
An MSP has warned that the widespread availability of disposable vapes in the Scottish capital risks creating a 'black market'. Sign up to our daily newsletter Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to Edinburgh News, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... The prevalence of disposable vapes in Edinburgh risks creating a 'black market' in the Capital, an MSP has warned. The comments follow a Local Democracy Reporting Service investigation which found shops across Edinburgh were still selling disposable vapes over a month after they were banned. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad And a leading health charity has called their widespread availability across the city 'disappointing'. 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Lothians Green MSP Lorna Slater said: 'Disposable vapes are a scourge on our environment. Before the ban 5 million were being thrown away every week in the UK, littering our streets, parks, rivers and beaches. 'Shops have had plenty of time to adjust their inventories. There's simply no excuse to still be selling these illegal products. It shows a clear lack of respect for the law and their local community. The illegal vapes which were purchased at Edinburgh shops despite being banned since June 1. | LDR 'The penalties for breaking this law can be steep. Now it's up to the Scottish Government to ensure enforcement teams are properly funded and equipped to crack down on those who are putting personal profit ahead of our environment and young people's health.' Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad And Councillor Kayleigh Kinross-O'Neill, the Green group co-leader, said: 'Disposables vapes are an environmental nightmare, and Greens firmly supported banning them. 'They create litter and reinforce the throwaway culture while having questionable health benefits so it's right we should see the back of them. 'However a ban is useless unless it is enforced, and the Local Democracy Reporting Service's investigation into this problem shows that enforcement in Edinburgh is practically non-existent. 'Unfortunately after years of austerity in local authority budgets, trading standards departments are under severe pressure, which may account for why so many stores in Edinburgh are apparently flouting the ban. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad 'But the Labour administration in Edinburgh need to get a grip on this problem and ensure resources are in place to ensure the ban is properly enforced. ' Our undercover investigation saw us purchase disposable vapes at seven shops in Edinburgh, with most of them displaying the vapes openly. At one, we saw none on the shelves, but we asked a shopkeeper if he had any. 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'It is a vital first step towards reversing the alarming upsurge of children vaping in Scotland during the last few years. 'It is deeply disappointing that some retailers have not been adhering to these new regulations, which came into effect at the start of June. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad 'It is vital that trading standards teams are supplied with sufficient funding to effectively enforce the new regulations as a matter of urgency to protect public health and the environment.' She also said that the charity wanted to see quicker progress at Westminster over a proposed ban on flavoured vapes. A committee report from trading standards officers, presented to councillors in May, said that the service needed more funding to enforce the ban without degrading other enforcement activities. A Council spokesperson said: 'Whilst the committee report highlighted pressures on the service, it clearly outlined the success of the teams in terms of seizures of illegal vapes. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad 'Recently, the Council has been in court enforcing the legislation by seeking two banning orders for traders who have flouted the law. All reports are taken seriously and will be investigated with action if required.' In many shops we visited, shopkeepers acknowledged the vapes were illegal, saying that they were trying to eliminate stock and make up for the fact that refill pods are not yet widespread. However, in some, people working the tills seemed to be confused by the ban. At one store, a shopkeeper appeared to legitimately believe that the vape we bought there was disposable. A different worker at the same store believed the same thing when we came back a couple days later, saying they had got the disposable units in two weeks prior. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Many companies have brought in reusable vapes which have the same design and flavours of their old disposable ones, at a similar price point. 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