For the chop: the battle to save Sheffield's trees

'Europe's greenest city' has lost 5,000 trees, chopped down by a private company despite furious local protests. Michael Gove calls the destruction "bonkers". Now, after a brief truce, the chainsaws are about to start their work again ...It's just after nine on a bitterly cold Wednesday morning and university lecturer Paul Norman has been patrolling a Sheffield street for more than an hour. Between glances up and down the road, he is marking students' papers, pleased with the gloves that let him use his phone's touchscreen, in case he needs to call for backup.An hour later, another academic, Sheldon Hall, has replaced him at his post. With everything still quiet, he reads a textbook on early cinema. Continue reading...