Hello and welcome to todays Levy Letter for Thursday. I hope youve stocked up on your Easter eggs and if youve got anything fun planned over the Easter period I hope it goes very well indeed. Im off for a few days now and you can look forward to your next Levy Letter on Tuesday.
Coming up on the programme today, we'll be looking at how Bluetongue restriction zones have split Lincolnshire in two, causing chaos for the farming community. If you feel you might be affected by this then dont miss the story tonight, and if youve got an experience or information to let us know about then get in touch at [EMAIL PROTECTED] as always. Find out why the government is sending one of its top men to convince Bridlington's doctors that big changes are needed in the town. We ask why MPs who campaigned against post office closures in their constituencies actually backed the closures in Westminster. And we'll be finding out if one sea side town can turn around its fortunes by building posh apartments and café bars. Of course well have the detailed weather forecast as well. Thats all coming up at half past six on BBC One tonight, I hope you can join me then. Over 55s As some of us start getting on in life I think theres an expectation that youre supposed to act more responsibly and mellow out, but maybe not so if youre planning to head abroad for your holidays. The Foreign Office has warned that British holiday makers in their mid to late fifties are causing the same problems associated with youngsters, and putting their heath at risk. Some of the problems reported with over 55s are excessive drinking, abusive behaviour, and accidents and death caused by over-eating and over-drinking. Recent surveys show 20% of 55-plus holiday makers would try something abroad that they wouldnt try at home. I suppose thats half the point of going on holiday, but not if it causes disruption or damages your health. Its extraordinary because as I said, it goes against the perception many people have of how youre supposed to behave, but maybe theres something about the sun and the sangria that makes people try to roll back the years. So if youre planning a summer break, or if youre heading off somewhere soon, remember to take care of yourself! Of course that doesnt mean you have to hang up your water skis just yet. Jams If youre heading away for the Easter weekend, it might be an idea to get an early start as severe traffic problems are predicted due to road works, and 10% more volume is expected on roads as people make the most of the long weekend. The M1, M4, and M5 are expected to experience problems as 6.5 million cars take to the roads with today and Monday expected to be the busiest. So if youre planning to drive somewhere, good luck and I hope you reach your destination on time. Student Drought Well it feels like there are more students than ever in Britain today, but the number of school leavers is expected to drop over the next 10 years, leaving 70,000 university places unfilled. Its due to a drop in the birth rate, which means universities are going to have to target more mature and foreign students and hope that school leavers get the results to fill places. Its amazing because so many more people go to university these days than they used to, yet theyre still going to struggle to fill places. 70,000 empty places is an awful lot, the rough equivalent to nearly six universities worth of students. Schools are also coming under pressure to close due to lower number of pupils, which again seems incredible when were always hearing stories about competition to get into schools. The fall in students could lead to increased fees for students in the future to make courses financially viable. So if you think you might want to go back into studying at some point, the universities might be very grateful for you in the next few years. I wonder if that will mean that itll become easier to get into a good university? It might cost you a little bit more though if the predictions are correct, thats from a report just out. Thank you for all your responses to the programme lately, we had another huge amount of messages, texts, and emails after our programme yesterday particularly about the story on offensive t-shirts. Its good to hear what youve got to say, and of course were always looking for new stories and information so if you know anything you think we dont get in touch and tell us about it. You can reach Look North directly at our email address [EMAIL PROTECTED] As I mentioned, youll get your next Levy Letter next week on Tuesday. Have a very good Easter, dont eat too much chocolate, and if youre planning something special then I hope you have a very good time. Take care, and I hope you can join me for Look North tonight at half past six on BBC One. Bye for now Peter And for the latest news and more where you live, go to: http://bbc.co.uk/humber and http://bbc.co.uk/lincolnshire ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- To unsubscribe from the BBC Look North newsletter, go to http://www.bbc.co.uk/england/looknorthhull/newsletter/newsletter_index.shtml, enter your email address in the unsubscribe box. 1.94.4
