Letters: July 25, 2016

Anonymity is granted only at the discretion of the editor, who also reserves the right to edit letters.

Tories’ ‘brutal regime’

AS A further kick in the teeth to students and education in general it was announced today that university fees are set to rise yet again by an extra £250 on top of the already extortionate £9,000 a year.

It should be remembered that education was free before to students via the Government university grants system until Tony Blair, then Prime Minister, decided that he would like to abolish this in accordance with his love for all things American and introduce the fee system in its place.

The Tories lost no time in cajoling the Liberal Democrat leader Nick Clegg, while in coalition with them, to do their dirty work and hoist the cost to an unbelievable £9,000 a year.

This in itself was a disgraceful enough act for Blair to carry out.

But there were just as bad things around the corner which were the introduction of Private Finance Initiatives to build NHS hospitals which, up until that time, had been tax payer funded.

Now it has led to much of the crisis in the NHS as the loans need to be paid back to privateers on a yearly basis at inflated interest rates.

Then followed the US-inspired illegal Iraq war, which could have been avoided, and which not only cost this country dearly financially, but also cost countless number of lives in Iraq and those of many of our service men and woman that took part.

Jeremy Corbyn was recently placed in the position, post Chilcott, of having to apologise sincerely for the misdemeanours of the Labour Party under Blair, while saying that something similar should never be allowed to happen again.

It is surely no coincidence that the leadership of Jeremy Corbyn and his pledge to bring about a

less brutal, fairer and more homogeneous and less divided society is what is attracting young people in droves to become Party members or supporters of him.

And, of course, add to this that he has also pledged that, if elected to Prime Minister, he will abolish the university fee system.

He want to see a return to the previous system of grants, and thus remove the millstone of debt from around the necks of many young people.

I was staggered while watching BBC Points West to see the current Tory ‘brutal regime’ in action as a lady cancer sufferer who had lost a leg and was now confined to a wheelchair had had her benefit switched to the new Personal Independents Payment or PIP system.

The result was that she received much less money and was no longer able to pay for the use of her car and which all but left her isolated in her own home.

The same programme reported from Bath about the recent increase in people sleeping rough in the city as they could not afford the ever spiralling cost of housing and that of renting.

The fellow from a charity that was being interviewed concerning the issue had it put to him that many of the people concerned were bogus scroungers and beggars and not homeless at all.

But he immediately rebuked this by saying that he knew each of them personally.

And he said only one of them was known to him as being a bogus opportunist who had since been moved on.

The same brutal regime sees fit to sanction benefits for the unemployed at job centres and drive them in to debt, while also forcing them to seek help from foodbanks.

People are now increasingly being forced to accept menial low paid jobs, many of which are zero contract ones.

Is this really the brutal and uncaring sort of existence that our young people should aspire to in what is the fifth richest country on the planet?

G A WOODWARD

Nelson Street

Swindon

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Serious health hazard

TO PERSONS involved with the planning, building and organisation of a recycling centre proposed for the Keypoint area.

I am opposing this proposal for the recycling centre at Keypoint for the following reasons:

The plant is, potentially, a very serious health hazard, the contents of “rubbish” delivered to this area for processing would possess many and various materials which produce different chemical reactions whilst in this so called “baking” system.

These toxins are then released into a type of filtration system and cannot be 100 per cent purified at all times.

The emissions from filtering are passed on to the 52 metre high stack/chimney (why this excessive height?).

Obviously we all know, don’t we, that toxins/pollution released into the atmosphere would probably be invisible and possibly, non smelly.

However, these emissions are potentially dangerous for health, short term or maybe long term. Exposure could mean chest, cancerous, mental health or many other types of illnesses especially for elderly, growing children, pregnant women, unborn babies etc.

For these reasons alone this method of recycling should never be allowed within at least a 10-mile radius of any residential building.

The prevailing wind would, 80 per cent of the time, sweep over South Marston and Shrivenham where 8,000 properties are planned to be built east of Sainsbury’s supermarket.

I understand we, here in Swindon, are to be the trial for this recycling plant.

Norway already has three which are similar I believe.

However, Norway is not England and is a vastly unpopulated country with plenty of coastline for dispersal of pollution problems.

The planned six lorries coming/going each hour every day from a 35-mile radius could have accidental problems, especially when contaminated residue is being removed from site.

They would also create extra traffic problems on the already saturated A420.

A stack of 52 metre height also creates ugliness and would certainly devalue many properties in the surrounding area, which is unfair.

These plants should only be built in unpopulated or coastal areas.

Good health should be priority.

P HAYES

Stratton St Margaret

Swindon

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Lack of communication

I WONDER if any Adver readers have experience of the lack of communication from Swindon Borough Council regarding emptying the green wheeled bin on July 5.

The service was not carried out, the bin being left unemptied by SBC, with a sticker stating “unpaid”.

However, this was not the case.

Full payment by cheque for £40 was sent to SBC in early March and a receipt was received in mid March.

Having spent considerable time with three separate phone calls plus two letters to SBC in Waterside Close, no one has responded by phone or writing.

The bin has now been emptied this week (19/07/16).

As a pensioner of almost 80 with a disabled wife, I think SBC should sharpen up their act!

BRYAN CONIE

Wheeler Avenue

Swindon

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Respect and tolerance

AS DISTRICT chairman for the Methodist Church in the Bristol District, which includes Bristol,

Gloucestershire, Wiltshire and Somerset, I am urging people to write to their MP to call for respect and tolerance in our national life in the wake of the divisive EU Referendum Campaign.

I am deeply worried at the increase in racist incidents and the growing concerns of many minority communities within the UK that they are feeling unwanted and threatened.

For some, the referendum has been an excuse to justify acts of racism and hate.

The outcome of the referendum has isolated many people and divided our communities.

As a Methodist, I am called to support our neighbours and communities and to seek justice for all.

I believe that these are views shared by many.

Together, we must ensure those in power do all they can to ensure that the worrying growth in race hate is dealt with quickly.

These are very complex and, for some, worrying times and I urge those of all faiths and those of

none to join us and stem the worrying growth of hate in our society.

A special website has been created to help people contact their MP to call for their support for the campaign.

It can be found at www.methodist.org.uk/nationallife.

THE REV DR JONATHAN PYE

Chairman

Bristol District of the Methodist Church

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Deceit in campaign

I’M NOT quite sure how Mr Adam Poole can claim I misrepresented his stated view (SA July 20) when I only quoted what he wrote on May 27 and repeated on June 11.

To make absolutely sure that I am not misunderstanding what he meant, his exact words were: “I do feel it is correct to point out that leaving the EU would put at risk every single one of the 3.5 million British jobs involved with producing the goods and services we export to the EU.”

Mr Poole is well aware that the claim is spurious and totally without foundation and now seeks to defend his position by conflating risk and loss.

I think your readers can judge for themselves whether the term “many, many people based their decision on which way to vote on a pack of lies” suggests Mr Poole thinks the 17 million Leave voters acted naively.

Mr Poole concludes his letter with another feeble attempt to suggest “the Leave campaign was very dishonest, deceitful and disingenuous from start to finish”.

Next he will be telling your readers the Remain campaign was scrupulously honest, totally without deceit and absolutely accurate in every respect.

As for the result lacking legitimacy, this is only in the minds of some of the 48 per cent who lost the vote.

What we do know is that many of the apocalyptic scenarios presented by the Remain camp have not occurred and actually never ever will.

DES MORGAN

Caraway Drive

Swindon