Drinks company Britvic has denied claims it ran a "meaningless" consultation with staff before deciding to vacate its Norwich factory.

As reported yesterday, trade unions and Norwich South MP Clive Lewis (below) have written to Business Secretary Greg Clarke calling him for to intervene and re-open the consultation into the proposed closure of operations at Carrow Works.

They said the consultation, which ended last week, was unclear and did not engage with staff in a meaningful way over plans to move production in 2019.

Britvic said it did engage meaningfully with employees and ran the consultation for well over the required 45 days.

Mr Clarke's office has yet to respond.

Image source, PA

Johanna Young was 14 when she disappeared from home in Watton at Christmas in 1992.

A 24-year-old man has been charged with throwing a firework in a public place following what police describe as a "small explosion" in a bin in a car park in Norwich.

It happened at The Forum at about 13:50 yesterday and caused the building to be evacuated.

There were no reports of any injuries.

The man, from Norwich, has been remanded in custody and is due in court tomorrow.

Andrew Sinclair
BBC Look East political correspondent

Trade unions and the Norwich South MP Clive Lewis have written to the Business Secretary Greg Clark calling on him to intervene and re-open the consultation into the proposed closure of the Britvic factory at Norwich.

They say the consultation, which ended last week, "was not clear or meaningful".

In their letter they say: "We do not believe that standing idly by while over 800 direct- and indirectly-employed regional workers lose their jobs is appropriate for any government."

The letter says that full-time trade union officials were excluded from the consultation and that the independent directors of Britvic twice turned down a request to meet the workforce.

If Mr Clark refuses to re-open the consultation, i understand that legal action could be taken against the company.

The Queen and Duke of Edinburgh arrive in Norfolk by train for their Christmas break.

Diss Express

Police are at the scene of a serious road traffic collision on the A148 at Sculthorpe.

Officers were called at 15:35 to reports of a crash involving a car and a motorbike.

The road has been closed.

A man has been arrested after a small explosion that caused The Forum in Norwich to be evacuated.

Police were called at about 13:50 on Wednesday to reports of a small explosion in a bin in the car park at the building on Millennium Plain.

It was quickly confirmed that the explosion was caused by a firework, which had been thrown into the bin.

The man, in his 20s, was taken to Wymondham Police Investigation Centre for questioning.

All lines between Norwich and Ipswich were blocked for more than an hour.

Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital is seeking permission to add another storey , externalto its building at a cost of £15m.

Image source, NNUH

A hospital spokesperson said the space would allow it to expand its radiology and cardiology services.

Interventional radiology provides a less-invasive alternative to open surgery, resulting in shorter hospital stays.

NNUH, the only provider of this specialist service in East Anglia and said demand was very high.

"An expansion is needed as delays in treatment could have serious consequences for some patients," the spokesperson said.

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Norwich's Forum building - which houses the county's main library - was briefly evacuated earlier this afternoon after a firework exploded in an outdoor bin.

The emergency services arrived at about 13:50, but the fire had been extinguished before crews from Carrow, Earlham and Sprowston arrived.

A loud bang was heard by people inside the building, which also houses a cafe, restaurant and the BBC.

Police said no-one had been hurt and no arrests had been made.

BBC Radio Norfolk stopped broadcasting from its studio at the city centre site for about 15 minutes, with the service switching to Suffolk during the disruption.

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Andrew Sinclair
BBC Look East political correspondent

The Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) for Norfolk has welcomed the decision by the government to allow the police to increase their share of the council tax bill by as much as an extra £12 a year.

Lorne Green said: "This announcement appears to be good news for policing.

"I have lobbied hard for central government to look again at police funding and allow PCCs more flexibility to respond to funding challenges and local policing needs."

Until now PCCs were limited to increasing their share of council tax by just 2%, which works out at £4.32 for an average Band D property in Norfolk.

Nick Hurd, the policing minister, said individual forces could increase the precept by up to £1 a month.

Mr Lorne hasn't decided yet exactly how much bills will go up by next year, but expect the increase to be much higher than £4.32.

Dashcam video shows a car crossing fields to try and avoid a confrontation.