6:20am Wednesday 9th May 2012
The Lord Mayor of York officially opened the new municipal bowling greens in Leeman Road and Kent Street.
Each ceremony was witnessed by a large crowd of spectators.
In opening the Leeman Road green, the Lord Mayor said he would like to express, on behalf of the ratepayers, the thanks of the city to Mr and Mrs Arnold Rowntree for their kindness in presenting the recreation and bowling green to the city, after which a friendly game was played.
In opening the Kent Street green, he said he was certain that would be a red-letter day in the history of Walmgate Ward.
It was the first municipal green that had been opened in the ward, but he hoped it would not be the last. (There was applause.)
He had been told that even if the green was a failure as a Bowling Green, the money expended on it would have been well spent, as they had provided a very pleasant spot. (There was more applause.)
The Lord Mayor then bowled the first jack and the first wood amidst loud applause.
The safety of the fragile and irreplaceable chain of office she wore had been a constant concern of many a Lady Mayoress of York when attending evening engagements.
For the 27 foot long chain, which was given to the city in 1670 by Marmaduke Rawdon, a wealthy citizen of the time, was very easily broken, and in fact had been on a number of occasions.
With this in mind the current Lady Mayoress, Mrs AMH De Burgh, who had held the office on three separate occasions, had presented to the city a new badge of office for the Lady Mayoress to wear in the evenings.
When she presented the new badge “with love to my dear city” at a ceremony at the Mansion House, Mrs De Burgh said she always felt a great responsibility for its safety when she wore the old chain of office, and she hoped future Lady Mayoresses would appreciate the new badge, and that the old chain might be saved from further damage.
Mr Michael Jopling, Minister of Agriculture, had announced major changes in fishing boat registration to end the abuse of 'quota hopping' by foreign fishermen on the east coast.
Speaking at the annual meeting of the National Federation of Fishermen's Organisations in York, Mr Jopling promised new legislation to tighten the laws to protect the British quota.
Under the changes companies wishing to register a British fishing vessel would have to be largely owned and run by British citizens living in the country.
Currently, foreign boats, particularly from Spain, were registering in Britain and fishing within British quotas.
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