North west news update 1 March 2024: Family pay tribute to man who died after crash

Assistant editor Iain Lynn with today's top north west news headlines and weather

Transcript

00:00 Hello and welcome. These are the top headlines making the news today from our newsrooms across

00:04 the North West. A family has paid tribute to a man who sadly

00:07 died following a crash in Polney Fylde. Michael Downing was driving a Vauxhall Corsa

00:12 on Blackpool Road when it collided with a parked Range Rover Evoque at around 12.15

00:16 am on Wednesday. The 33-year-old was taken to hospital where

00:20 he sadly died. Paying tribute, his family said Michael was

00:23 well liked, quick-witted, decent and well loved and he will be missed by everybody who

00:27 knew him. Controversial plans for new sports facilities

00:31 on Preston's Ashton Park have been approved for a second time amid acrimonious scenes

00:35 at the Council meeting where the decision was made.

00:38 Preston City Council had already approved the principle of the development which includes

00:41 the installation of a 3G football pitch, two-storey sports pavilion and 150-space car park at

00:47 a behind-closed-doors meeting of the authority back in December. The privacy was due to the

00:52 discussion of commercially sensitive information. However, the threat of a legal challenge from

00:56 a resident's group fought to oppose the plans. The Council opted to reconsider the matter

01:01 in public but many of the locals who came to listen to the fresh deliberations were

01:05 left unimpressed. Some even walked out of the public gallery before the decision was

01:09 taken. A banned motorist who badly injured a woman

01:13 when he drove into the middle of a Wigan funfair during a police car chase has been sent to

01:17 prison. Jordan O'Reilly had already appeared before a Bolton Crown Court judge to admit

01:22 to a number of motoring offences relating to a terrifying episode in Hindley Town Centre

01:26 last year. He has now received a three-year jail sentence.

01:30 A former Dragons Den investor can now try his pot with a tea towel designed by an award-winning

01:35 Lancaster artist. When Lydia Ramms received an award from renowned entrepreneur and business

01:40 mogul Theo Perfitis, she presented a gift to him - one of her specially designed tea

01:45 towels. Lydia was a recipient of the prestigious award at Theo's annual Small Business Sunday

01:50 event in Birmingham. And cameras have begun rolling in Burnley

01:54 as filming begins on the sequel to the Netflix hit Bank of Dave. The film, which this time

01:59 will tell the story of Burnley businessman Dave Fishwick's attempt to take down payday

02:03 lenders, is the follow-up to the surprise 2023 hit movie which charted Dave's attempt

02:08 to set up a high street bank. Dave has said that the success of the movie and subsequent

02:13 worldwide exposure had changed his life and promised that the sequel will be even bigger

02:17 than the original. In the weather, breezy with rain and snow

02:21 moving north during the morning. Saturday will be cloudy with showers staying rather

02:25 cold - maximum temperature of 7 degrees. That's it for now, thanks for watching, have

02:29 a great weekend, we'll see you Monday.