We've all heard them all - Hull supposedly has Britain's worst schools, fattest people and most teenage mums. In fact, none of these myths are true.
The truth is that, while Hull has many of the social issues seen in any major city - and some of the statistics are exaggerated by the very tight local government boundary - it’s a great place and getting better all the time. It's also a place where so many people are working so hard and successfully to raise standards and address issues.
There's more evidence of that today with the excellent news that Hull is no longer one of worst areas in the UK for teenage pregnancies. Congratulations to the teams from Hull City Council and the NHS who have done such great work. It is clear that sustained campaigns and activity around awareness of sexual health and contraception have achieved outstanding results.
Teenage pregnancy has huge consequences in terms of the health, education and life chances of girls who have babies so young, so the progress will have many positive benefits.
Together with fast-rising GCSE results, great new school buildings and a jobs boom from renewables on the way, it is clear that Hull is on the up.
Oh, and we've also got a great story to tell about our region's economy, courtesy of the Hull and East Yorkshire Bondholders - a fantastic network of more than 140 businesses and organisations that is the envy of cities and regions across the country.
City no longer in top 10 for teen pregnancy
Green growth, blue horizons - our economic story
John Meehan is absolutely correct here but it’s the underlying message he conveys that is the most important – the local media talks down Hull and also Goole. Yes we know ‘bad news’ sells newspapers but it has a detrimental effect on the confidence of the wider community – It’s confidence that will get us out of the situation we find ourselves in… so please stop knocking it!
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