​Since its creation last year, Scarborough Town Council has been in ​“ongoing discussions” regarding the transfer of North Yorkshire Council-managed allotment sites to the parish authority.

​Following an inspection of allotments in the town, councillors have said that any transfer of the allotment sites is conditional on agreeing a “fully costed and funded remediation package” or NYC undertaking necessary remedial works prior to their transfer.

​At a full meeting of the town council on Thursday, April 2, members were told that while dozens of plots are abandoned and unused, 340 people are on waiting lists for allotments in Scarborough.

​Cllr Sarah Mason placed on record “serious concerns regarding the historic and ongoing management of allotment sites within the Scarborough area and the implications this has for any proposed transfer of responsibility from North Yorkshire Council”.

Scarborough Allotments. Sarah Mason/Stc.

​Speaking at the full meeting, she said: “I have undertaken a recent walkabout and inspections across all five sites, and it has revealed a pattern of long-term neglect, unclear tenancy arrangements, unmanaged risks and a significant number of plots are unused or abandoned despite long waiting lists”.

​She said that one site contained “significant amounts of rubbish, including asbestos sheeting”.

​Cllr William Stuart noted that “there are some very good allotment holders in Scarborough who are really committed and they are just as frustrated as we are”.

​A motion approved at the meeting noted the financial, compliance, legal, operational, and reputational risks that the town council faced if an immediate transfer of allotments was undertaken.

Scarborough Allotments.. Sarah Mason/Stc.

​It stated that in their current state, the sites could not be considered fully fit for transfer without substantial remedial works or a funded plan to address the highlighted issues.

​Cllr Mason told colleagues: “There is one structure of concern on a plot which is predominantly made with asbestos sheets and is on the verge of collapse, and this has been requested on numerous occasions to be removed.

​“No regular checks have been carried out, even though this is part of the contract to the plot holders.”

Scarborough Allotments,. Sarah Mason/Stc.

​She added: “Across all sites, we have observed long-term neglect of maintenance, large numbers of unused or abandoned plots and unclear boundaries between plots, poor communication with plotholders and severe lack of management regarding clear tenancy terms, boundaries, responsibilities, and implementation”.

​Town councillors pledged to send a formal letter to North Yorkshire Council setting out the authority’s findings and concerns and requesting “full documentation and clarification of responsibilities and seeking a clear proposal for remediation and/or funding prior to transfer”.

At 8.51pm, the Whitby crew attended a fire on the beach at Tate Hill. Shovels were used to extinguish the fire.

Then at 9.41pm, the crew re-attended the fire on the beach which had been attempted to be relit, crews dismantled the bonfire using spades and sand.

A spokesperson for North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue said: “The fire was believed to have been caused deliberately.”

Flavor Flav was among the celebrities in attendance at the women’s Final Four on Friday night, sitting courtside for the UConn-South Carolina game with former Gamecocks player Aliyah Boston.

Flav, a founding member of the hip-hop group Public Enemy, is also friends with Gamecocks coach Dawn Staley.

The 67-year-old Flav is a longtime supporter of women’s sports and attended various Olympic competitions this winter. He invited the U.S. women’s ice hockey team to Las Vegas after their gold medal win in February, shortly after the women turned down a trip to Washington.

___

AP March Madness bracket: https://apnews.com/hub/ncaa-womens-bracket and coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/march-madness

A slight figure in neat shirts and jackets, Magyar seemed too slick and urbane to reach the hearts of the rural electorate, but has proven himself a strong challenger. Orban, 62, is a village boy who speaks village Hungarian, Magyar is a Budapest lawyer by training. Conscious that his status as a member of the metropolitan elite may make him less likely to appeal to rural voters, Magyar has toured the countryside indefatigably for the past two years, drawing large crowds. Unlike Orban, who waxes lyrical on global politics, Magyar focusses on domestic issues such as healthcare, education, transport and rural depopulation in his speeches.

Two men suffered head injuries at the Newsham Park Hospital venue with around 15 police cars and ambulances attending the scene

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Two people have been taken to hospital following a “large disturbance” at an event on Friday evening.

Police were called to a premises at Newsham Park Hospital on Orphan Drive in Liverpool just after 9pm on Friday, April 3, Liverpool Echo reports.

Officers confirmed two men sustained head injuries and were taken to hospital, while the venue was evacuated. Witnesses described a significant emergency response, with around 15 police cars and ambulances descending on the scene as an event was taking place inside the former asylum building.

The incident brought an abrupt end to a live set by DJ D.O.D, which had been due to continue until 10pm. Footage from inside the venue captures the moment the music was halted, as a man on stage told the crowd: “Ladies and gentlemen, unfortunately due to an incident we have to stop,” prompting boos from those in attendance.

As attendees made their way out of the venue, many reported witnessing a substantial emergency presence, with police vehicles and ambulances lining the surrounding streets.

One event-goer described the moment the night was cut short. He said: “We were all stood there and it was coming up to 9pm. We were waiting for his bangers to be played and then he just cut it short and said ‘due to an incident we need you all to get out. We won’t be playing anymore.’

“Then we all started booing and it just went from 0 to 100 after that.” Following the incident, DJ D.O.D apologised to fans on social media, saying: “Liverpool I’m so sorry the show was cut short, there were multiple incidents in the crowd which led to the police shutting down the show.”

“This is the last thing I wanted but your safety means more to me than carrying on the show. Music is about coming together. Hope to see you all again soon.”

Officers departed the scene at around 10.30pm. Enquiries are ongoing.

Anyone with information can contact Merseyside Police social media desk via X @MerPolCC or on Facebook ‘Merseyside Police Contact Centre with log 930 of Friday 3 April.

You can also report information via the police website: https://www.merseyside.police.uk/ro/report/ocr/af/how-to-report-a-crime/ or call 101.

Alternatively, contact the independent charity Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111, or via their website here: https://crimestoppers-uk.org/give-information/forms/give-information-anonymously. In an emergency always call 999.

With Nintendo rumoured to be planning a remake of one of their most beloved video games, a reader suggests a number of changes for a modern version of Zelda: Ocarina Of Time.

Nintendo don’t make a lot of remakes, but it’d be wrong to say they don’t ever do them. They are usually for more minor games though, like Super Mario RPG and a few Kirby games. It’d also be wrong to say there are never leaks about their upcoming games. It’s not common, unlike with other publishers, but it does happen – with Donkey Kong Bananza having been leaked years ahead of time, even if the information was a bit vague.

The latest leak didn’t really have any information though, beyond the fact that a remake of Zelda: Ocarina Of Time is coming. There’s no hint of who’s making it or how far it’ll go in changing things. Will it be a Resident Evil 2 style deal or something closer to the 3DS version of Ocarina Of Time, which was really just a remaster.

I have no idea, but naturally I’m hoping it’s as big budget an effort as possible, which seems likely if it’s supposed to be their key Christmas game. If it is that kind of effort though that implies changes – just like the Resident Evil remakes – and I have some ideas for what they could be.

I will say from the start, that I’m hoping the changes will be relatively minimal. I don’t think there’s any need to change the combat or (with one exception) the dungeon designs, but there is a lot of fine tuning that would be useful. However, another thing I don’t want them to change is the creepiness and weirdness of the game, which is more extreme than most of the modern ones – so it’ll need actually scary ReDeads and keeping the Forest Temple as it is.

The first change I’d make is simple: voice-acting. The most recent games have been slowly adding more but while I absolutely agree that Link shouldn’t talk everyone else should. It just spoils the immersion when they don’t, and I don’t believe they have it that way for any reason other than Nintendo don’t like spending money on actors.

Another big decision is the art style. It’s hard to tell whether the original was meant to be photorealistic or not, given the limited tech, but while it’s close I’d say it was stylised a bit and it should stay that way. Looking at character faces in particular, you can see a subtle cartoonish effect and I’d like them to keep that.

Some basic changes would be making Hyrule Field bigger and/or filled with more things and generally ensuring that the whole game is just one big open world, just with the same design as the original. That should be no problem given the last two games.

One of the biggest problems I can foresee is that Ocarina Of Time is a lot more complicated than a modern game, especially in terms of dungeon puzzles. It wasn’t considered particularly hard at the time but nowadays people aren’t going to be used to the lack of hand-holding.

The infamous Water Temple is going to flummox any younger gamer, so I think that either has to be changed or, and this would be my preference, they have alternative versions of the dungeons and maybe the game as a whole, with a lite mode that’s easier and simpler and the full fat version.

There’s a lot of other stuff that could be added, like new side quests (the original doesn’t actually have many), more monsters everywhere (again, there’s not many, which is probably because of the limitations of the N64), and maybe even a new dungeon (a lot of fans think there should’ve been a Light Temple).

On a story note, I’d also like some clarification on what happens to Navi at the end, hopefully leading into a tease about a Majora’s Mask remake. I never liked that her fate was never revealed.

Considering how beloved the game is and how many later ones copied it, especially Twilight Princess, I don’t envy whoever gets the job of doing the remake but I can definitely say that I will be there day one.

By reader Onibee

The reader’s features do not necessarily represent the views of GameCentral or Metro.

You can submit your own 500 to 600-word reader feature at any time, which if used will be published in the next appropriate weekend slot.

Just contact us at gamecentral@metro.co.uk or use our Submit Stuff page and you won’t need to send an email.

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In 1990, Europe produced around a third of its electricity from nuclear power. That has now fallen to an average of 15%, leaving the continent “completely dependent on expensive and volatile imports” of fossil fuels, she said, putting Europe at a disadvantage compared with other regions of the world.

The war in the Middle East has disrupted the world’s supply of helium. Qatar produces about a third of global helium, but attacks on its gas infrastructure have forced production to stop.

At the same time, Iran is blocking the Strait of Hormuz, one of the world’s busiest shipping channels, through which Qatar exports both natural gas and helium. Losing 30% of global helium could have major consequences for science, medicine and industry.

Helium is used to cool the superconducting magnets used in MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) scanners, which help diagnose conditions through high-resolution, 3D imaging of human tissues.

Superconducting magnets enable the sustained, intense currents needed for high resolution imaging. A superconductor is a material that conducts electricity with zero resistance (defined as the opposition to current flow in a material).

In order to do this, however, the magnets need to operate at extremely low temperatures.

Helium is the ideal coolant for these magnets because it has the lowest boiling point of any element: -268.9°C. At this temperature or below, helium is liquid and can be used to bathe the magnetic coils used by MRI scanners.

Some particle accelerators, such as the Large Hadron Collider at Cern in Geneva, also use liquid helium to cool their superconducting magnets. These magnets are used to bend and control proton beams.

The processors in quantum computers need to be cooled to similarly low temperatures in order to operate and, here too, helium is the coolant of choice.

A versatile element

Helium is used in computer chip production to displace oxygen and moisture within fabrication facilities, where conditions are tightly controlled to avoid contaminating delicate microprocessors.

The element is also used as a coolant during high-temperature stages of chip production. These include the etching process, where unwanted material is removed from semiconductor wafers – the substrates on which circuits are assembled.

In space rockets, the non-flammable gas is used to flush out fuel lines and to pressurise fuel tanks.

Welding and fibre optic production requires helium to create inert, controlled environments.

Helium’s value comes from physical properties that are very difficult to substitute. In addition to its low boiling point, which makes it an excellent coolant, helium is inert and extremely light.

Its tiny molecules make it ideal for detecting the smallest leaks in pipelines and equipment.

Despite being the second most abundant element in the universe, helium is extremely rare on Earth. It forms underground over billions of years from the radioactive decay of uranium and thorium.

Because it is lighter than air, it escapes easily into the atmosphere and eventually into space, making it effectively non-renewable.

Manufacturing helium

Unlike most resources, helium is rarely produced on its own. In Qatar and other countries, helium is produced as a by-product of liquefied natural gas (LNG) production.

That means the supply of helium depends entirely on the production of natural gas: when gas production drops, so does helium output.

This is exactly what has happened in Qatar, where attacks on gas facilities have suspended both gas and helium production.

Exporting helium is not simple. It requires highly specialised cryogenic containers to keep it extremely cold during transport. These shipments must pass through narrow trade routes such as the Strait of Hormuz, making the supply chain vulnerable to political conflict.

The specialised containers are insulated, but not refrigerated. This means that, due to the physical properties of helium, the element will escape from the containers over time.

Other countries have tried to develop helium production to reduce reliance on Qatar. Iran has worked to extract helium from its South Pars Gas Field, but sanctions have made this difficult. China, meanwhile, has been building the infrastructure to make its own helium and is prospecting for new reserves to diversify supply.

The US has the world’s largest helium reserves, stored in Amarillo, Texas. Originally established in 1925 to supply the airship industry, the reserve became a global strategic buffer that helped stabilise prices.

In recent decades, however, the US sold off much of the stockpile under the Helium Stewardship Act of 2013, reducing this safety net.

With semiconductor supply chains threatened, there is a risk that helium shortages could act as a constraint on the AI revolution. Taiwan, the global leader in chipmaking, has said that its stocks of helium are stable due to a diverse supply. South Korean officials, however, have said that the country’s supplies will run out until June.

Adapting to pressure

However, there are ways that countries could adapt to a squeeze in global helium stocks.

Stockpiling: keeping reserves of helium for critical applications.

Substitution: limiting helium use to applications where its unique properties are essential.

Recycling: recovering helium from industrial or scientific processes, though this is difficult because helium easily escapes containment.

Diversification: Expanding production in multiple countries and exploring new reserves, as China is currently doing.

These measures could help alleviate future fluctuations in helium supply. But none are quick fixes. That’s why the disruption to supplies caused by the situation in the Strait of Hormuz is being felt around the world.