John Wimperis

Clevedon shopkeeper Daniel Adams, who challenged North Somerset Council’s new parking charges while undergoing treatment for stage three bowel cancer, lost his High Court case and was ordered to pay the council’s legal costs. Although the court found a breach in the consultation process, the judge ruled that Adams’s objections would not have changed the council’s decision and granted only a 10% reduction in costs. A fundraiser launched by his wife Kelly raised £10,000 toward an interim £15,000 payment, which Adams said demonstrated strong community support. The council separately abandoned planned charges on Hill Road after Clevedon Town Council threatened legal action.

Councillors in Bath and North East Somerset unanimously backed a charter granting the River Avon rights to thrive, avoid pollution and receive representation after campaigning led by researcher and poet Meg Avon, who staged a symbolic marriage to the river to draw attention to environmental decline. The We Are Avon group has recruited guardians to monitor the river and is urging other councils along its course to adopt the charter. The resolution also calls for urgent review of water quality measures, action on sewage discharges and regular meetings with water companies to hold them accountable for pollution.

Former Bath mayor Bharat Pankhania announced his resignation as a councillor months after reposting false claims on X alleging an arson attack on Jewish charity ambulances was an Israeli false flag. Suspended from the Liberal Democrats and investigated by Bath and North East Somerset Council, he apologised and said he accepted responsibility for the posts. His resignation is expected to trigger a by-election, while five people have been charged over the March attack on Hatzola ambulances in London.