Police are to hold a series of action days to target illegal foreign vehicles in South Holland.

Operation Dalmatian will involve local officers, working with the Roads Policing Unit and other agencies, to conduct a series of “Days of Action” throughout June.

Community Policing Inspector Jim Tyner said: “A number of residents have raised concerns that foreign registered vehicles across South Holland are not taxed, insured, or have current MoT certificates.

“Vehicle testing procedures can be less rigorous in other countries and there is a legitimate concern that some cars in the area may be less road-worthy than they should be, putting road users at risk”.

By law, foreign registered vehicles can be brought into the country temporarily and used for up to six months but, once this period expires, they need to pay a registration fee, road tax and, if more than three years old, get an MoT.

Insp Tyner said: “This is not about targeting individuals because of their nationality and many foreign-registered vehicles are being used perfectly legally.

“The intention of this operation is to actively tackle those who flout the law and to prosecute those offences accordingly.

“I want to reassure residents that we are listening and that their concerns are being addressed by my officers are taking appropriate action”.

Anyone who believes that a foreign registered vehicle is being used illegally, should call 101 or email the details to spaldingestates.npt@lincs.pnn.police.uk

A woman aged 69 accused of criminal damage had her case adjourned to June 13 by Spalding magistrates on Thursday.

Doris Draper, of Ravens Drove, Holbeach Fen, is accused of damaging a motor vehicle and equine equipment on April 4. She was not in court for the adjournment.

A man who admits driving while disqualified claims he did so because of a “medical emergency”.

Julius Ziga (35), of Chestnut Avenue, Spalding, also pleaded guilty to driving without insurance on the same date – May 3 – when he appeared before Spalding magistrates on Thursday.

The court adjourned the cases for a special hearing at the court on September 19 when the prosecution and defence will present their evidence.

Ziga’s solicitor Rachel Stevens told the court: “Mr Ziga is pleading guilty to these offences but he is saying he was driving because there was a medical emergency.

“That is not accepted by the Crown so it will be contested.”

A young woman must pay compensation after stealing a mobile phone from a friend’s house and running up a bill for calls.

Shelley-Anne Dooney (24), of Cranmore Lane, Holbeach, pleaded guilty at an earlier hearing to theft of a Samsung mobile phone belonging to Lincolnshire Field Products.

At a resumed hearing on Thursday, Dooney was ordered to pay £127.44 compensation to the firm to cover the cost of the phone and the calls she made. Dooney must pay £75 costs.

Magistrates also made a community order with 12 months’ supervision.

Rebecca Ritson, prosecuting, said the phone was used by one of the company’s drivers.

Dooney went to visit his daughter at home and it was later discovered the phone was missing.

Solicitor Carrie Simson, mitigating, said Dooney had personal problems at the time and was described in a probation service report as “emotionally vulnerable”.

Mrs Simson said Dooney described the theft as “a stupid mistake” but accepted responsibility for her actions.

Sutton Bridge Parish Council may take its fight to overturn planning consent for a £200million gasifier to the Secretary of State.

The parish council meets on Tuesday and members are being asked to go to the top to ask for a public inquiry into South Holland District Council’s decision to give planning consent to the EnergyPark Sutton Bridge plant at Wingland.

An extraordinary parish council meeting was called some days ago at which members agreed to set aside a £10,000 fighting fund.

Judicial review is one avenue being explored by parish councillors and an anticipated formal complaint to the district council may end up with the Local Government Ombudsman.

Three parish councillors – Shirley Giles, Jenny Rowe and Vicky Hills – have tabled a series of motions for Tuesday’s meeting, including using some of the £10,000 fighting fund to leaflet villagers and keep them in the picture.

Coun Rowe said it was the first time South Holland had dealt with a gasifier application and consent was given when there remain so many unanswered questions about its possible effects on people, wildlife and the environment.

She said: “We know now that all other countries are building them in the middle of nowhere.”

Coun Hills says the district council paid scant regard to people living and working at Wingland and there was nothing she could see in documents submitted to assess the risk of explosion or fire.

“That’s a huge factor especially considering it’s right next door to a gas fired power station,” she said.

The district council imposed a planning condition to restrict the plant to using wood rather than biomass and, since then, EnergyPark Sutton Bridge has slashed £100million off the original estimate of the build cost.

The company says the plant will be less complex if it burns wood alone.

But Coun Hills says that means something has changed and she wants to know why there isn’t a fresh planning application.

She says the plant was originally going to handle 350,000 tonnes of biomass a year, but the tonnage has grown to 420,000 and she wants to know what impact that will have on roads and the environment.

Parish councillors also say there’s not enough wood in the UK to feed the plant and it will have to come from overseas.

They are also concerned the wood may come through Port Sutton Bridge, making life a misery for those living on West Bank who will be subject to HGV traffic and noise.

Police are looking into claims that racist posts appeared on Facebook pages of three newly elected UKIP county councillors.

Spalding businessman Alan Jesson, UKIP’s county council group leader Chris Pain and Boston member Tiggs Keywood-Wainwright claim their accounts were hacked and a series of offensive posts are not theirs.

Coun Jesson said: “Somehow our Facebook accounts have been infiltrated and they have changed words and added comments that are not ours.”

He said comments wrongly attributed to him were published by “Hope Not Hate”.

Coun Jesson said: “Nothing like this has been done before we took up our councillorship. I don’t know what is going on. I am pretty sick to the stomach, to be honest.

“I am annoyed and fed up that I have been blamed by people who read them and now, because of that, my name is being dragged through the mud.”

Coun Jesson believes he and fellow UKIP councillors have been singled out by the Left Wing after they took part in what he termed “uncontrolled immigration marches”.

He and fellow UKIP councillors are now having the hacking investigated by their own “computer people”.

The Spalding South ward councillor said: “I am not racist. I have got friends from all creeds and colours. I am not racist at all.

“I am annoyed at the British Government’s inability to control its borders because we haven’t got the space in this country for any more migrants and that’s one of UKIP’s policies.

“I don’t blame people coming to this country for work and that. My view is that we have got to control our borders and we need to get out of the EU and I have put that message out.

“At the end of the day, some allegations have been made. I am a bit flabbergasted by it all.

“You go and try and help people and this is how it all blows up in your face.

“Apart from being elected, I was just a man in the street. I would like to thank all the local people for their continued support.

“I haven’t even sat down in front of my computer and had a look yet because I run two businesses and I am trying to make progress representing the people who voted me in.”

Police have appointed a detective inspector to look at the case.

A police spokesman said: “Lincolnshire Police are aware of these allegations and are information-gathering in the first instance.

“Any inquiry into alleged comments made in cyberspace and potential social media hacking is extremely complex, particularly when it may involve any historic Facebook or Twitter activity.”

County council leader Martin Hill said he doesn’t know who complained about the comments on Facebook.

He said: “It wasn’t me or anybody I know.

“Obviously it’s a police investigation and there’s not much to be said. We will have to let them get on with the investigation.”

He said UKIP councillors were saying they had been hacked, but in any event they would not be subject to any procedures under the council’s standards regime as the Facebook posts pre-dated their election.

There were fresh calls this week for East Midlands Ambulance Service (EMAS) to be scrapped after it was hit by a £3.5million fine for failing to answer 999 calls on time.

There are two national targets for emergencies – EMAS scraped in by the skin of its teeth to hit the eight minute target of 75 per cent, answering 75.2 per cent of calls within that time.

But that was the second worst performance of the ten services in England.

EMAS was bottom of the league for the 19-minute target – scoring 91.8 per cent against a target of 95 per cent.

The massive fine is a slap on the wrist because the cash will be ploughed back into the service.

It’s the third year in a row that EMAS has had a multi-million fine for missing targets.

Sutton Bridge has taken the brunt of late-arriving or even “no show” ambulances and EMAS apologised to the family of a man who died.

County councillor Chris Brewis, who represents the ward, says Lincolnshire needs its own ambulance service so the county can control its own destiny

He said: “I just want us to have a fit for purpose service in Lincolnshire.”

EMAS claims it will deliver an improved service under a new programme, Being the Best, when ambulances are stationed at new sites.

But Coun Patricia Talbot, who chairs the county council Health Scrutiny Committee, has asked Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt to look at the plan because councillors believe the consultation was flawed.

She said: “I was appalled to see that they (EMAS) had been fined for the third year running.”

EMAS claim its Being the Best programme will “make a significant contribution to improving performance”.

l EMAS provided 54,509 journeys to hospital for Lincolnshire patients in a life threatening condition.

A young couple are looking forward to getting married after a freak accident almost wrecked their dreams.

Drew Warnes (25) nearly died after the door of a bus luggage compartment flew open and hit him as he walked along Spalding’s Double Street last month.

Drew had been taking a load of washing to his dad’s house at around 8.30am when the bus passed him in the narrow street.

The door hit him in the shoulder blade as the bus drove past and threw him to the ground.

In the immediate aftermath, police reported that Drew had suffered only minor injuries, but when he arrived at Pilgrim Hospital, Boston, he was found to have injured his neck and fractured ribs.

He said: “I really don’t remember anything about it but witnesses say, and you can just see it on CCTV, that the luggage compartment lifted up and I went flying.”

Drew, of Spring Street, was transferred to Queen’s Medical Centre, Nottingham, and fitted with a head brace to support his neck.

Drew said: “I thought the worst was over. I was back on my feet almost straight away, but then on the Friday, four days after I was hit, I felt that I couldn’t breathe.”

Drew had suffered a very rare rupture of the thoracic duct and the left side of his body was filled with a bodily fluid called chyle.

He said: “That can be deadly and it was shutting my body down.

“I had to have an emergency operation and the doctor had to research it because it is so rare.

“I spent two days in intensive care and came really close to losing my life.”

But Drew pulled through, helped by his girlfriend of five years Amy Holmes.

He said: “She was there by my bedside the whole time.

“Before it happened I had been planning to ask her to marry me and when they thought I might die, my boss told her.

“So when I came round she asked me if it was true so I proposed from my hospital bed.

“It’s not exactly how I had planned it, but when something like this happens it makes you realise you just have to go for it because you never know what’s going to happen.

“I’ll make it up to her when I get better.”

Drew is now walking well and will stay in the neck brace for eight to 12 weeks.

He added: “My vertebrae had come out of line so the neck brace keeps everythin in line while it heals.

“But it’s not too bad and I just feel lucky to be alive because I came so close to death.”

A mum from Holbeach is angry with county highways officials after her son had to use a flooded underpass under the A17 to get to college.

Julie Winterton (46) of Toll’s Lane was “wound up” after her teenage son rang her last Friday about the rain-soaked underpass linking Penny Hill and Park Road and used by students walking to University Academy Holbeach.

Broken drains above the underpass caused the flooding which was repaired by engineers from Lincolnshire County Council on Tuesday, but Julie wants to see a permament solution to the problem.

“My son rang me at lunchtime on Friday and said he was concerned about walking through the underpass in case he got his feet wet,” Julie said.

“It wound me up when I saw some pictures of the underpass that he sent using his mobile phone, so I rang the county council and reported it.

“I rang again on Monday and the council said it had taken several calls about the leak and it was in the pipeline to be done.

“But it didn’t get sorted until Tuesday and I’m concerned that the underpass might flood again because it’s happened before and I won’t let my son cross the A17.”

A former South Holland councillor is ready to fight his old authority because he says it failed to seek expert advice on a £200million gasifier’s likely impact on protected wildlife in The Wash.

Paul Espin, a former chairman of The Wash Estuary Strategy Group, has formally complained to the council because it gave planning consent to the gasifier at Sutton Bridge when Natural England made it clear the authority was under an obligation to ensure protected species surveys were done.

He says the planning department’s report to committee members did not include Natural England’s key advice on The Wash Biodiversity Action Plan (BAP).

Natural England is the Government’s own expert body on wildlife and there are 157 protected species in The Wash BAP area, which is of international importance.

Mr Espin says no surveys were carried out and planning committee members “could not make a reasoned decision in the absence of that information”.

He said: “South Holland District Council was a funding partner and agreed to The Wash BAP and I think it’s inexcusable that they ignored it.

“Having spent 30 years working in and around The Wash in an environmental context, I am personally very concerned at the lack of consideration for The Wash, which is the most highly designated estuary system in the country.

“It is unacceptable that The Wash should be put at risk, not only for myself but for the millions of people that live in, work in and visit The Wash area.”

Mr Espin’s complaint to the council could well land on the desk of the Local Government Ombudsman if it cannot be settled, but he expects the authority to try to “brass it out”.

The annual Deanery Schools’ Celebration took place at Gedney Victory Hall and was a huge success.

Some 13 primary schools in the Elloe East deanery took part and Year 4 pupils enjoyed exploring the story of Jonah and the whale through drama, music, dance and art.

Each half-day session began with headteacher and magician Rob Little giving a lively summary of the story.

The children acted out and danced the story and made beautiful booklets. They also worked on a tapestry kneeler.

The project, organised by a committee headed by Rev Rosemary Goddard, is funded by Mary Bass Charity Trustees and churches in the deanery.

The activities are delivered by Spalding’s Act II theatre company and dance tutor Katrina Brackenbury.

Every child was given a T-shirt, decorated with a picture of Jonah, as a memento of the day. Bishop Christopher of Lincoln visited on one of the days.

Holbeach Parish Council has boosted its numbers with three new members taking up their roles.

Karen Rooke, Carol Rudkin and Mark Smith were all co-opted onto the council at this month’s meeting in Holbeach and will serve on the Town ward.

Meanwhile, the next council meeting will be held at Holbeach St Johns Village Hall on Monday June 10 at 7pm.

The new chairman of Lincolnshire County Council has pledged to push the county’s claim as a business hotspot in the coming year.

Coun Ray Wootten was elected as chairman in place of ex-councillor Robert Palmer who was unseated by UKIP’s Daniel McNally in the county elections earlier this month.

“I’m very proud to be chosen as chairman and I intend to help the people of Lincolnshire, visit as many towns and villages as possible and raise the county’s profile by encouraging tourism and boosting the economy in Lincolnshire.

“During this coming year, I want to encourage as many businesses as possible to relocate here because there’s an untapped wealth of opportunity in Lincolnshire which is such a diverse county.

“I hope to promte its way of life and quality of food.”

Community groups set up to reduce crime and help victims of crime can apply for cash help from a new £30,000 scheme launched this week.

A new community and volunteer fund has been started by Lincolnshire Police and Crime Commissioner Alan Hardwick to reward voluntary groups trying to make their areas better places to live.

Groups can apply for grants between £250 and £1,000 as long as projects fit in with the commissioner’s pledge to tackle anti-social behaviour and help vulnerable people, including victims and witnesses of crime.

Mr Hardwick said: “What inspired me to set up this fund was a visit I made to a youth club where the people there mentioned what an enormous difference a few hundred pounds would make to them.

“I thought that must be true of many groups around the county that are doing a tremendous job for their communities on small budgets and that occasionally need a little bit of help.

“The grants are available for crime prevention or reduction initiatives and to reward people who willingly give up their own time for the benefit of others in the community.

“That’s a very real part of policing in this county.”

Biker Colin Blundell (76) is so keen on improvised music that he makes a fortnightly 160-mile round trip to play in a group in Colchester.

But now he’d like to climb out of the saddle of his mighty Piaggio MP3 and play closer to home if he can find like-minded musicians to join him.

Colin wants to set up an improvised music group in Sutton Bridge and is inviting all musicians – no matter what they play – to consider giving it a go.

The 20-strong group in Colchester play all kinds of music, including classical, folk and jazz,

Somebody plays a note, others join and they weave sounds together to make an entirely new piece of music.

“It’s like an active participation sport,” says Colin. “It’s so spontaneous and energising.”

He plays the family of recorders, from bass to sopranino, and composes his own music.

“I have never had any musical training, but I have taught myself how to compose,” he said. “My parents bought me a piano so I learned how to put chords together.”

Colin joined the improvised music group in 2006 and attends on Mondays, once a fortnight, staying overnight in a B&B.

Families from different cultures, countries and backgrounds got together for a community picnic at Spalding’s Ayscoughfee Gardens on Saturday.

Organised by new group Linked2Gether, the event was the first of several planned to heal the wounds that divide Spalding’s British and Eastern European families.

“We were hoping for a few more people as it was well advertised but we were very pleased with how the afternoon went,” said Konstancja Wdowczyk of Linked2Gether.

Around 100 people attended the event and there was a large proportion of English residents there, she added.

“There was a nice mix of people, the entertainment was good and the kids had a brilliant time.

“We certainly achieved our goal and showed the other side of the coin.”

She said there will definitely be more events in the future and the group will be meeting this week to form plans.

“It did cost quite a lot of money to stage, however,” added Konstancja (27), who works at Spalding’s Citizen’s Advice Bureau and helped form the new community group.

“So if anyone is able to help us with sponsorship, please contact us on the number below.”

nThe group is also looking for more volunteers, especially someone with IT skills. If you would like to get involved, please call Linked2Gether on 07955211359.

A 22-year-old man from Swineshead has appeared in court charged with posting a ‘grossly offensive’ anti-Muslim message on Facebook following the murder of soldier Lee Rigby in Woolwich.

Benjamin Flatters faces a charge under the 1988 Malicious Communications Act following a message he posted on Facebook on May 22 which is alleged to be offensive to Muslims. No details of the message were given at the hearing at Lincoln Magistrates’ Court on Saturday.

Flatters, who spoke only to confirm his name, age and address, was refused bail following a 20-minute hearing.

The court was told he faces further matters including four charges of inciting under-age girls to engage in sexual activity by sending sexual messages by Facebook as well as two drugs charges.

Flatters was remanded in custody until tomorrow when he will appear before Skegness Magistrates via video link.

Thieves got away with tools and jewellery in a series of high-value thefts.

Police are investigating a break-in at a business in North Street, Bourne, on Tuesday when power tools worth more than £1,000 were taken.

Last Monday there were two burglaries in the Deepings.

Jewellery worth £4,000 was stolen from a home in Thackers Way, Market Deeping and an electric tile cutter was taken from a property in Ascendale, Deeping St James.

The incidents are not being linked.

Call police on 101 if you have any information on any of the crimes.

Sutton Bridge Parish Council may take its fight to overturn planning consent for a £200million gasifier to the Secretary of State.

The parish council meets tonight (Tuesday) and members are being asked to go to the top to ask for a public inquiry into South Holland District Council’s decision to give planning consent to the EnergyPark Sutton Bridge plant at Wingland.

An extraordinary parish council meeting was called some days ago at which members agreed to set aside a £10,000 fighting fund.

Judicial review is one avenue being explored by parish councillors and an anticipated formal complaint to the district council may end up with the Local Government Ombudsman.

Three parish councillors – Shirley Giles, Jenny Rowe and Vicky Hills – have tabled a series of motions for tonight’s meeting, including using some of the £10,000 fighting fund to leaflet villagers and keep them in the picture.

Coun Rowe said it was the first time South Holland had dealt with a gasifier application and consent was given when there remain so many unanswered questions about its possible effects on people, wildlife and the environment.

She said: “We know now that all other countries are building them in the middle of nowhere.”

Coun Hills says the district council paid scant regard to people living and working at Wingland and there was nothing she could see in documents submitted to assess the risk of explosion or fire.

“That’s a huge factor especially considering it’s right next door to a gas fired power station,” she said.

A man’s home will become his part-time “prison” because he refused to wear community service work boots for fear of picking up a fungal infection.

Paul Martin (51), of Harvester Way, Crowland, refused to put on safety boots because they had been worn by other people, Spalding magistrates heard.

In February, Martin was given 12-weeks’ prison suspended for a year and 120 hours unpaid work by a magistrates’ court sitting at Lincoln for driving while disqualified and breach of a previous community order.

At Thursday’s hearing, Martin admitted breaching the order by demonstrating “unacceptable behaviour” on April 16 by his refusal to put on the safety boots and by failing to attend unpaid work sessions on April 22 and 23.

Chris Payne, for the probation service, asked magistrates to mark the breach by imposing an additional element to the sentence, a 7pm-7am curfew for four weeks.

But following a plea from Martin’s solicitor, Carrie Simson, the court revoked the original order and replaced it with an eight-week 7pm-7am curfew which means he must remain in his house or back garden during those hours. He will be electronically tagged.

Mr Payne said Martin had completed 56 hours of the order.

On April 16, Martin refused to wear the safety boots supplied by his supervisor.

Mr Payne said: “He was given a couple of chances to wear those boots but refused to do so, saying that other people had worn the boots before him.”

Martin failed to attend work on April 22 and 23 and was contacted by phone to ask for the reasons, but didn’t respond to the calls.

Mrs Simson said Martin worked previously without being asked to wear safety boots.

She said: “In his own words he didn’t want to get any fungal infections.”

Mrs Simson said Martin thought he had completed 62 hours of the order, but felt it wasn’t working. He had twice turned up when no work had been arranged and wasn’t given credit for that.