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Neil Elkes

Neil Elkes

It's high time we fixed our clock!

A LANDMARK clock is to be fixed at last - more than a decade after its hands ground to a halt. Read

Developer cuts back £7m scheme

DEVELOPERS have scaled back plans for a £7 million housing, hotel and golf complex in a bid to end a two-year planning wrangle. Read

Leaders' fury at park fire vandals

YOBS who set fire to a city park causing £10,000 of damage were today slammed by community leaders. Read

Families in pub victory

A PUB associated with drink-related disorder has lost its battle to take advantage of new round-the-clock drinking laws. Read

Fury at pub's extended hours bid

POLICE and furious families today vowed to battle a Birmingham pub's plan to stay open until midnight under new licensing laws. Read

MP backs deportation plan

BIRMINGHAM'S first Muslim MP today backed Government plans to deport extremists who back terror campaigns and incited religious hatred. Read

Bulldozers demolish Birmingham's Bronx

IT was the moment families had waited years to see - the demolition of the notorious city estate dubbed Birmingham's Bronx. Read

1,000 pubs set to miss licence D-Day

UP to one thousand city pubs, restaurants and late night takeaway owners are expected to miss next week's deadline for new licensing applications, potentially putting their businesses at risk. Read

Lib Dem joy after vote

INNER city voters last night delivered a hammer blow to Labour as the party continued to suffer from the fall-out of last year's postal vote fraud. Read

Victory in mast battle

VILLAGE campaigners were celebrating today after winning a two-year battle to see off a controversial mobile phone mast on their doorstep. Read

Rerun of vote scandal poll

VOTERS in Aston and Bordesley Green go to the polls tomorrow in a local by-election prompted by the postal ballot fraud revealed earlier this year. Read

OAPs to taste village life

FUTURE generations of Birmingham's elderly will be living in self-contained Florida-style retirement villages complete with their own bar, restaurant, gym and even a cinema. Read

Landmark homes bid

A LANDMARK office tower in east Birmingham could be demolished to make way for a £10 million apartment block. Read

Leave home tidy and claim £100

FED-UP housing bosses are offering a carrot to persuade council tenants not to treat their homes like rubbish tips - a £100 reward. Read

Bed blocking cat-astrophe!

A Birmingham hospital has been rocked by a bed-blocking crisis, with more than 20 healthy patients taking up space urgently needed for the sick. Read

It's time to fight back!

STREET gangs turning parts of Birmingham into no-go areas for law abiding families were today warned: "Your time is up". Read

Pubs in red tape tangle

BIRMINGHAM pubs and clubs are struggling to fill in 220-page application forms under "chaotic" new licensing regulations, a city solicitor has claimed. Read

City backs new Tesco

TESCO has ended months of speculation by submitting its plans to rip up city playing fields to make way for a superstore. Read

Making space for a fun time

YOUNGSTERS who aim to boldly go where no-one has gone before are in for a treat at Birmingham's Thinktank Science Museum. Read

£20,000 fines alert to pubs

BIRMINGHAM pub landlords and restaurant owners face £20,000 fines if their new licence applications are not completed by an August deadline. Read

Author Profile

A local news reporter in the Birmingham, Sutton Coldfield and south Staffordshire area since 1995, Neil Elkes is the local government correspondent covering the activities of Birmingham CIty Council - Europe's largest local authority. An avid reader and collector of comics Neil is writing a column on this for the Birmingham Mail website.

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