MICHAEL GOVE sparked fury five years ago this week when he warned he could "smell the sense of defeatism" in some North-East schools.

The Education Secretary picked out east Durham as a "prime example" of schools being dogged by a "problem of ambition in certain traditional communities". Mr Gove said his target was not local parents, who shared the dream of the vast majority for their children to "have the chance to go to university".

Instead, he turned his fire on the lack of choice and on Labour-run Durham County Council, saying: "When you go into those schools, you can smell the sense of defeatism."

The comments, following a speech in London, angered and mystified local Labour MPs and educationalists.

Phil Wilson, the MP for Sedgefield, and Grahame Morris, the MP for Easington, said they could not remember Mr Gove visiting any school in east Durham in nearly three years in the job.

Mr Wilson said: "This is a slur on the hard-working teachers, parents and students in the area."

Mr Morris said: "He has never been to a school in east Durham and all he can smell is his own prejudice against children from working-class families."

LETTERS of Victorian serial killer Mary Ann Cotton went under the hammer, selling to a Yorkshire dealer for £2,200 – four times more than the original estimate.

Paul Hughes, Tennants' auctioneers head of books, said: “The letters proved hugely popular and were obviously the big draw of the day. The saleroom half emptied after they were sold."

DURHAM County Council came under fire after refusing to scrap a £12,000-a-year "clothing allowance" for its councillors.

The call to axe the allowance came after council cuts led to 1,600 job losses, with critics pointing out that the money could be better used.

Kevin Rowan, regional secretary of the Trades Union Congress, said: "Councillors need to take the lead by making sure that there aren't any unjustifiable allowances or other perks that they receive.”

AND in North Yorkshire, Amy Williams, 23, was in the running to bag a right royal prize as one of the main contenders in the 2013 Shed of the Year competition.

Amy, from Aiskew, near Bedale, North Yorkshire, got her shed for her 15th birthday to nurture her vegetables in.

But she branched out to convert it into a shrine to vintage furniture and the royal family.

"I think it really took off when I had a wartime themed party and my gran brought a china tea set with the Queen on, my dad put in a fireplace and there are chairs and a china cabinet.

"It's a real royal retreat."