I wish to support the points made by Alan Brooke (Mailbag, June 25) about the intended destruction of Honley Corn Mill by Morrisons supermarkets to make way for their possible new store.

Not only is this mill part of the heritage of this area but behind the steel tanks which now cover the frontage is an extremely attractive old stone building with obvious other uses which would not require its removal.

We hear constant references to the way fine local buildings were subjected to thoughtless demolition in past decades but this is a proposal which carries on down this same ill-considered path.

The intended supermarket is to be sized midway between the present Morrisons Meltham and Waterloo stores and is clearly intended to serve a wide catchment area.

No information has been forthcoming as to the way extra traffic would be handled at this already very busy junction.

Just like the ongoing arguments about extra houses, there is a failure to comprehend that most of the valley areas are accessed by narrow lanes and already disastrously maintained country roads.

Morrisons’ intention to allow their car park to be for general use of local people is farcical because of the steepness of the road from it to Honley village centre. Who do they think is going to park in this location and walk up such a steep hill to use local facilities?

We are told 210 extra jobs would be created but no assessment was supplied as to how many others would be lost by the relocation of businesses presently occupying this site and the effect on existing local shops.

Morrisons have looked at the entire proposal from their own self-interest. That is to be expected.

Morrisons claim their new shop will increase competition but with their Meltham store, which they intend to enlarge, their large store at Waterloo and proposed substantial Honley supermarket, it would give them a very considerable presence in this side of Huddersfield.

Where is that bringing extra competition, especially after they have flattened all the existing local shops? Village shops are vital for older, less agile residents and those without cars or people who prefer village shopping.

Moreover, the impartiality of Kirklees Council is questionable as Kirklees owns the Highways Depot which is part of the site and stands to benefit from the developments.

We are told that this highways depot would be relocated at Morrisons’ expense but we were also told that a new Huddersfield Sports Centre would be paid for by Tesco.

Perhaps there should be no supermarket at all but if one has to come it should not be this one. It is too big and in the wrong place, both physically and to bring the best economic benefits.

If a supermarket is to be built, it should not be determined by Morrisons or Tesco’s self interest, not the vested interests of landowners, but by what clearly calculated and actual improvements it brings.

Neither should it be covertly decided or at the expense of our local history and heritage, which, as Alan Brooke so rightly points out, is vanishing at an alarming rate.

STEPHEN GREEN

Honley

Police red tape

JUST read your article on the allotment break-ins and subsequent problems.

I felt I should just let you know that the spokesperson from the police in Wakefield was not very specific.

The facts are:

When I phoned I explained I was site secretary with permission from plot holders to report on their behalf.

I explained to the person who answered the phone that this was the case and I held all the necessary documentation on each owner such as date of birth, address, contact telephone number and precise details of damage and stolen items. The answer given by this person was he was unable to take all details for the reasons that “a home office directive meant they had to take individual calls only.”

BRIAN GRANGER

Marsh

Going bananas

YOU state in your report of the crackdown of Ale Trail revellers that “there was not a single person dressed as an inflatable banana.”

How long has being dressed in such garb been a criminal offence? If it is an offence, how would they be allowed on the train?

There are also logistical problems, the station barriers and seating arrangements, especially if there was a bunch of them.

BRIAN HORTON

Berry Brow

Harold’s schooldays

CAN we please put an end to all the guesswork about Harold Wilson’s time at Royds Hall Grammar School?

In her excellent history booklet of Royds, Lynn Free, BSc, AKC, MEd, records that Harold went to Royds Hall from New Street Council School, Milnsbridge, in 1927, passed his school certificate in 1932 and left later the same year before transferring to a Grammar School in the Wirral when his father found work there.

MIKE SHAW

Cowlersley

Let’s end Kirklees

MORE cuts in Kirklees. Why don’t we sort it out by leaving Kirklees and returning to just Huddersfield.

Then cut the council members and leave frontline services as they are. Also cut council member’s perks and pension too!

BRIAN HINCHCLIFFE

Crosland Hill

Lack of socialists

THE disabled are robbed of employment and benefits. People already living hand to mouth are hit by the evil bedroom tax.

The welfare state is cut to ribbons and the NHS is being strangled by the final stages of privatisation.

Never mind folks, we have the huge compensation of half a billion pounds for super fast broadband for country dwellers.

It’s a shame there are no socialists to vote for anymore. Only Mark II Tory Blairites, Thatcherites and Lib Dems who throw all principles to the four winds for power!

STEVEN MIDGLEY

Elland

Natural justice?

HOW pleasingly ironic that a drug addict on bail for going equipped for theft has his own home burgled while in hospital from a drug overdose (Examiner, July 2).

The only downside being that someone else will be paying for his council house window to be repaired.

Richard Huddleston

West Slaithwaite