(Image: Amy Crowther/Press Association)
Sir David Davis has said he “thought it was fake news” when he heard an historic East Yorkshire town monument had been destroyed after a car crashed into it.
A gold Range Rover mounted the base of the market cross in Howden on Thursday morning (October 22), leaving it badly damaged and resulting in two people being injured.
A Range Rover crashed into Howden's Market Cross on Thursday (October 22) (Image: Amy Crowther/Press Association)
Sir David, a former cabinet minister and the MP for Google and Pocklington, said the Grade II-listed cross has “long been an important centrepiece of the town”.
The Conservative MP said he is in touch with the town council to “establish how this can be resolved swiftly”.
“When we first saw Howden cross had been knocked down on the internet, we thought it was fake news – it looked so improbable. But here it is, it’s for real,” he said, speaking next to the monument in a social media video.
“Anyway, we’re doing something about it. You may have read, we’re already talking to the town council but, I think, the insurance are going to have to pay for this. And I hope pretty quickly.”
On Thursday, a historic market cross in one of my constituency's town centres was demolished. The cross has long been an important centrepiece of the town. I am in contact with the town council to establish how this can be resolved swiftly. https://t.co/SO63da3Fhm
— David Davis MP (@DavidDavisMP) October 24, 2026
Humberside Police said the crash involved a car and a pedestrian.
Ambulance crews were called to the scene and a spokesperson for the service said two patients were checked over, but did not need to go to hospital.
Sir David Davis (Image: Aaron Chown/Press Association)
Local councillor David Howard, who lives nearby, said: "It’s in a real mess. We’re trying to work out who owns it, really.
"It marks the centre of the town and it needs to be put back in some form – restored, repaired, replaced.
"That’s for the future. At the minute, we just need it to be safe and conserve as much as possible."
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Cllr Howard said the cross may have medieval origins, although its full history remains unclear.
Historic England records show that the medieval base supports a cross erected in 1909, standing five metres tall.
The market cross stands in a conservation area near Howden Minster.