Controversy over sightseeing wheel on Whitby's West Cliff

The wheel has been operating from the green space behind the Whalebone Arch since July 9, offering visitors panoramic views of Whitby’s coastline, harbour and historic landmarks.

Scarborough and Whitby MP Alison Hume said Whitby Town councillors and many businesses were “rightly annoyed” they weren’t consulted before North Yorkshire Council decided to install the wheel on the West Cliff.

“I can also understand why residents at the Royal Hotel, who thought they’d booked rooms with uninterrupted sea views, are annoyed too,” she said.

“A memorial bench to murdered teenager Sophie Lancaster has been moved to accommodate this temporary structure.

"A spokesperson for the foundation established in her name said they weren’t made aware either.

“To avoid something similar happening again, I suggest NYC appoint a paid officer (from current pool) with personal responsibility for Whitby who can liaise with local stakeholders on local issues.

"The town deserves to have a champion in Northallerton.”

Whitby Town Mayor Sandra Turner said she first found out about the wheel on Facebook.

"That to me isn’t good enough,” she said.

"It’s never about spoiling anyone’s fun but for me, North Yorkshire Council is the lead authority and not to even inform Whitby Town Council was a serious error of judgement.

"I would like to have discussed locations and given my input and it’s impacting on businesses, not just in the immediate vicinity.”

Coun Turner – who was unanimously voted in as Town Mayor for the first time earlier this year – said NYC has since apologised and said it won’t happen again.

"Hopefully we can move forward on a collaborative working relationship,” she added.

One woman, Kath Brown, commented on Alison Hume’s Facebook page that she and her sister had driven to Whitby from Kent to visit their mum and dad’s bench only to discover the wheel in its place.

"So upsetting we were not told,” she said.

In response, North Yorkshire Council’s corporate director for environment, Karl Battersby, said: “We could and should have engaged more robustly at local level, as well as with the owners of the memorial benches which we moved temporarily to protect them.

“We have tightened our process for situations like this and now included additional aspects that will take us beyond our statutory requirements and ensure more focus on the engagement side of things.

"It will include confirming that all stakeholders have been appropriately consulted with and will include any individuals, groups or organisations linked to any memorials.

“We are working very closely with the Sophie Lancaster Foundation to put things right and we are pleased that this has resulted in them trusting us to restore Sophie’s bench, our local staff on the ground are being sent Sophie wristbands by the foundation and we have built a positive and open relationship with them.

"This has included sharing our public statements and aligning our approach to this.

"We are committed to ensuring Sophie’s bench will be there for the future so that whoever would like to, can sit and remember Sophie there.

“We have also spoken to the owners of the other memorial bench and promised both the benches are being treated with respect and will be carefully reinstated.

“So, while we accept we could have done this better, we have held our hands up and learned much from this, which we hope will improve such circumstances in the future.”

The temporary tourist attraction – which also includes a VIP seat – is in Whitby until Monday August 4.