Thursday 12th February

Thursday, 12 February 2026 05:00

By Steve Haigh

The government says it's ‘working flat out’ to arrive at a decision on ordering a new medium lift helicopter with Leonardo in Yeovil. We’re being asked to suggest where new electric vehicle charge points should be installed in Somerset. A new project is inviting people to look up and help map Somerset’s night skies... and more

Defence Minister, Luke Pollard, has reiterated that the government is ‘working flat out’ to arrive at a decision on ordering a new medium lift helicopter with Leonardo in Yeovil. Speaking during an emergency debate in Westminster Hall in London, the Defence Minister, said the government will not allow the decision to ’time out’ but did not provide a date when a final decision will be made. The Yeovil factory’s Italian owners have said that if the contract to build a new medium lift helicopter for the RAF, worth up to £1.4 billion pounds, is not forthcoming by March 31st the Yeovil site will shut. Yesterday’s debate, organised by Yeovil MP, Adam Dance, and attended by other Westcountry MP’s, discussed the closure threat to the Yeovil site and pressed the government to act faster on the medium lift helicopter order.

The Minister for Flooding has been on a visit to the Somerset Levels. Emma Hardy MP said the government was putting £75m into flood defences this year in Somerset and was looking at funding a tidal barrier for Bridgwater. Meanwhile, Bridgwater Conservative MP, Sir Ashley Fox, has welcomed the government’s intervention, but says what is needed is a long-term dredging and pumping plan on the Levels.

We’re being asked to suggest where new electric vehicle charge points should be installed in Somerset. Somerset Council is planning to fit 1600 low-powered charging sockets near homes, on local roads and in places with high footfall. The Council says the charging points will benefit people who don’t have off-street parking and are unable to install a charge point at home. You can submit a suggested locations online via the Somerset Council electric vehicle charging page.

A new project is inviting people to look up and help map Somerset’s night skies. The Somerset Star Count, led by CPRE Somerset, the local branch of the Campaign to Protect Rural England, runs from this Saturday for one-week, and asks people to count the number of stars they see within the Orion constellation. The CPRE say the data will help to assess light pollution across Somerset.

Entries are being invited to this year’s Ilminster Literary Festival children's writing competition. There are four age categories; five to seven, eight to 11, 12 to 14, and 14 to 16. Organisers say young writers should use their creativity, writing stories on a topic of their choice. Entries, which can be submitted individually or through a school, close on Friday, March 27th.

More from News

Tuesday 17th March

The government is being asked to help fund Somerset's carnivals. Bridgwater Town Council wants more trains to stop at the town’s railway station. A fund raising pie throwing event is taking place for Red Nose Day in Chard... and more
Monday 16th March

Drivers are being told that it could take several more weeks yet before Hendford Hill in Yeovil reopens to traffic. A new bus service between Glastonbury and Castle Cary railway station is to start on a trial basis. Children in Chard are being given free reading books as part of a scheme founded by Dolly Parton... and more
Friday 13th March

The first of the new medium lift helicopters being built by Leonardo in Yeovil for the RAF will be delivered in 2031. Somerset Council has launched a public consultation on planned new charges at its two hundred public car parks. More women in Somerset are said to be taking up walking football... and more
Thursday 12th March

A Yeovil headteacher says he’s concerned about plans to stop giving school holiday food vouchers to families on low incomes. The owner of Yeovil Town is calling on fans to be patient as he continues his overhaul of the National League side. A high voltage fault is being blamed for plunging 1700 homes into darkness in the Ilminster area... and more
Wednesday 11th March

Plans have been submitted to convert two properties in Yeovil into houses of multiple occupation. A new court date has been announced for a Yeovil man charged with attempted murder. An engineer who has worked at the Leonardo factory in Yeovil for 40-years has won a top industry award... and more
Tuesday 10th March

Police say a fire at the former Oscar Mayer food factory in Chard was started deliberately. Yeovil College says it would have been adversely affected had Leonardo not won the contract to build new medium-lift helicopters. A seven-foot dragon will be visiting towns and villages in our area during the next few weeks to promote Somerset Day... and more
Monday 9th March

Two Wildcat helicopters from 815 Squadron at RNAS Yeovilton have arrived in Cyprus to help protect RAF Akrotiri from further Iranian drone strikes. New figures show that 40 people were killed on Avon and Somerset’s roads in the last 12-months. A Somerset man has been recalling the day 60-years ago when he was a passenger on the last train on the Somerset and Dorset Railway... and more
Friday 6th March

Defence Minister Luke Pollard has been explaining why it took the government so long to confirm a contract for the Leonardo in Yeovil to build new medium lift helicopters for the RAF. Police are investigating a break in at a pet shop in Ilminster. Somerset Council is to stop using red ink on council tax reminder letters... and more