Gove in hot water in row over old borders

IT is the sort of issue where Ministers are advised to tread carefully – the sensitivty of local identity.

But Education Secretary Michael Gove found himself in a heated Commons exchange with Hull North MP Diana Johnson when she invited him to a school in her constituency. “I am always grateful for the opportunity to visit the East Riding,” said Mr Gove before being swiftly cut off.

Ms Johnson, a member of Labour’s home affairs team, corrected him: “Hull is not in the East Riding”.

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Mr Gove, a keen historian, ploughed on saying “well, historically it is”, only for Ms Johnson to stand firm and insist “it is not now”.

The tense exchange was eventually ended when Mr Gove decided to move on “beyond history and geography”.

However, he stopped short of guaranteeing he would visit the city.

Hull’s status as a unitary authority makes it fiercely independent, although historically it has been considered part of the ceremonial county of the East Riding.

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Its identity is further confused, having been part of the now defunct county of Humberside until the 1990s. The Humberside issue led to politicians lobbying Royal Mail to stop using the title in postal addresses.