Ralph Blackburn

Stacey White, West Yorkshire Combined Authority’s head of mass transit place and consents, has left the £2.5bn West Yorkshire tram project to join Sheffield City Council. Her departure follows the exits of mass transit director Mike Birch and transport executive director Simon Warburton, making three senior departures in six months. The authority says staff movement is normal on long-term infrastructure projects and that White leaves the programme stronger. The changes come amid criticism from Mayor Tracy Brabin over Whitehall bureaucracy and delays after a Treasury infrastructure review required revisions to the project’s approach, pushing completion into the late 2030s. The Government is consulting on giving regional mayors greater control over mass transit decisions.

A digital pay-as-you-go train ticket trial on Northern services between Harrogate and Leeds and between Sheffield and Doncaster has been extended until September 2027. The GPS-enabled app calculates the cheapest fare, aims to simplify ticketing and reduce fare evasion, and has been used for more than 30,000 journeys. The cap on users has been removed following positive feedback, while Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander and Northern commercial director Alex Hornby presented the scheme as part of wider railway modernization ahead of the launch of Great British Railways.

A grieving mother told a Nursing and Midwifery Council hearing that two midwives falsified notes and withheld critical information before the death of her newborn daughter at Leeds General Infirmary in 2020. Fiona Winser‑Ramm stated that inaccurate documentation by midwives Ruksana Bibi and Yasmin Karolia denied her and her husband essential information about their baby’s deteriorating condition. She described being assured that labour was progressing normally while CTG monitoring reportedly showed concerns that were not communicated. The panel heard allegations that records were altered repeatedly and that earlier delivery could have saved the baby’s life. Karolia’s solicitor acknowledged incorrect documentation, while Bibi denies most allegations. The hearing is ongoing.