Why A Newspaper In Yorkshire Refused To Publish An Article By David Cameron
The Yorkshire Post was “incredulous at how shallow” the prime minister’s article was.
To mark English Tourism Week, the paper was offered a bylined article from the prime minister promoting the region and its attractions, beginning with the words "I love Yorkshire & the Humber".
Cameron with soldiers responding to floods in York city centre last December.
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The column was "very formulaic, lacked empathy and only made passing reference to the misery caused by the Yorkshire floods", an op-ed stated.
"As many of you will be aware, the Yorkshire Post is still waiting for Mr Cameron to respond to this newspaper's open letter, published on January 26 exactly one month after the floods, when we challenged the Tory leader to answer a series of key questions on flooding policy – and how he intends to provide this region with the level of investment currently afforded to the South," the article says.
"After careful consideration, we chose to spike Mr Cameron's article on editorial grounds – it would have been a disservice to our readers to give the Prime Minister such a platform when so many homes, businesses and tourist destinations, the latest being Jorvik Viking Centre and the iconic Settle to Carlisle railway, are paying such a high price for the floods."
The article, he said, ignored "the extent to which Yorkshire tourism has been hit by the floods, and did absolutely nothing to assure people that the government is committed to better protecting the country in the future".
Rather than instantly rejecting the letter, the paper slept on the decision and, "out of curiosity", looked online to see whether the "very personal piece" had appeared anywhere else.
Sure enough, you can find Cameron extolling his love for Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly in the Plymouth Herald, saying he "loves Lincolnshire" in the Lincolnshire Echo, and stating he "loves Northumberland" in (wait for it) the Northumberland Gazette.
Another version of the English Tourism Week article in the Eastern Daily Press caused minor embarrassment when Cameron declared his love for Holcombe, which is in Devon, instead of Holkham, which is in East Anglia. Meanwhile, the York Press did publish a pro-Yorkshire article bylined to the prime minister.