A WELL-KNOWN councillor has declared a "final victory" for Yorkshire in what he said has been a "half century identity crisis" for the people of east Cleveland.

Cllr Steve Kay, Independent, who was the cabinet member for Highway until Redcar and Cleveland Borough Council's annual general meeting on Thursday, made his announcement after ten new signs were erected on roads in the district.

The word Yorkshire is also now being used in the council's address.

Cllr Kay, who represents the Lockwood ward, said: "Although Redcar and Cleveland council has never legally left Yorkshire, the local government reorganisations of the 1960s and 70s put questions into residents’ minds about what to call our area. In fact, it would be true to say that for half a century we’ve been suffering from an identity crisis.

“It is up to the Council to take the lead in this matter but for decades we’ve prevaricated. Now however, we’ve taken two important steps which can leave no one in any doubt that we are part of Yorkshire. We have included ‘Yorkshire’ in the council’s address and have erected ten Yorkshire Coast ‘gateway’ signs on the main roads into the Borough. The signs artistically announce to motorists that they are entering Redcar & Cleveland ‘on the Yorkshire Coast.’ No one can now be in any doubt that we have reclaimed our heritage and that Redcar and Cleveland council is a fully-fledged member of the Yorkshire community.

“'Yorkshire' is one of the world’s most successful brands and our borough can now benefit to the fullest extent. Our coastal towns, Redcar, Marske and Saltburn, should benefit enormously from increased tourism, as will market towns, like Guisborough and Loftus. The east Cleveland villages will experience a fillip to the pub and grub trade as well as holiday accommodation opportunities.

“I sincerely hope that we shall bid for Redcar to host the finish of next year’s fantastically successful Tour de Yorkshire.

"The bright signs were designed by the Council ‘in house’ and replace arrays of dilapidated signs that were due to go in any event.

“In effect, we have re-asserted our Yorkshire identity at minimal cost to the tax-payer.”

Yorkshire is a middle English word but its history is far older than that. The word York comes from the Viking word Jorvik which was the Norse interpretation of the Old English, or Saxon word, Eoforwic (boar town), which itself was an interpretation of the Roman name for York, Eboracum.

However the word Cleveland, or 'cliffland' is also an ancient word, originally referring to the coastal hills from Whitby to the Tees.

An even older administrative entity, The Kingdom of Northumbria, spread from the Humber to Edinburgh at its height although its size varied, emerged in the Dark Ages after the Romans left Britain.