EVERYBODY in this country should be concerned about our forthcoming nuclear power station programme.
An energy gap is to be filled with them and so we are potentially faced with nightmare scenarios when tragedies happen.
The terrible forces of nature which Japan has suffered are very unlikely here – but we can all see what terrible problems occur when nuclear stations go wrong.
We are told terrorist attacks are always a possibility so these nuclear stations could be a target or possibly a plane crashing into them or even an internal explosion.
So no-one can give 100% guarantee that radiation leaks will not occur. Like Japan, we are heavily populated and a serious leak would cause untold damage.
If you told anyone that Japan would suffer like they have done a year ago you would be laughed at, but sometimes the truth is stranger than fiction. Apparently 100,000 jobs depend on the programme going ahead, but how many will be lost if things go wrong?
CONCERNED
Dalton
When the wind blows
I LIVE within three miles of 16 windmills and they won’t make enough power to light a dog kennel as they are never turning.
Perhaps they generate power when they are still. I somehow doubt it.
Jennie roe
Denby Dale
Just ticking boxes
THE census is about ticking boxes on the form.
There are about six boxes on each question. All people have to do is tick the boxes that affect them and the ones that don’t they can leave alone.
For the box that asks about the religion one practices, that is down to the person’s own choice. You believe or you don’t believe. I ticked the box that stated Roman Catholic.
I practise my faith on a regular basis and that is my choice. For those who are atheists that is their choice.
State schools can teach about evolution or about Darwin if they choose. That is their option just as church schools have a right to teach religion. That is part of their ethos.
We all play a part in the life of the United Kingdom.
STEPHEN MATTHEW FLYNN
Almondbury
Census bullying
WHY do the powers that be threaten us with a £1,000 fine if we don’t complete the census form?
Could it be partly, but in small measure, to claw back some of the millions of pounds it has cost to put out? If it isn’t one thing, it’s another, telling us what to do.
Aren’t we already being pestered enough with the European Union breathing down our necks at every turn?
Enough is enough! Surely it is now time for us ‘the people’ to give the orders.
BRENDA HOLROYD
Netherthong
Unforgettable concert
WHAT an absolute fantastic concert the youth of our area put on in the Showcase Concert at the Town Hall on March 17.
When I was treated to a ticket to watch my six-year-old granddaughter play the violin with the Junior Strings I never expected to see and hear such accomplished performances by more than 50 young children on stage at the same time.
This was only one of the performances by more than 500 youngsters and the sheer professionalism of the older players had to be heard to be believed.
A lot of these performers I am sure will go on to have a career in music, but those who do not, the skill and dedication needed to learn and give pleasure to others through their own efforts will stand them in good stead.
While praising the young musicians for the brilliant show they put on we must not forget the dedicated and patient teachers who made this possible.
Along with the youth of today they get maligned in some quarters but I think it is high time we started concentrating on all the good that is in our society and not the bad.
Lastly, and by no means least, praise must be given to the Huddersfield Town Hall staff who had the job of re-arranging the dozens of stands and chairs after each performance.
If you want a superb evening out to marvel in our area’s renowned musical talent, watch out for the next Showcase Concert. You will not be disappointed.
MRS N CLARKE
Almondbury
There is no Alternative
WHILE out canvassing in the Greenhead ward for the Conservatives I was struck by the lack of interest in the upcoming referendum on the Alternative Vote system.
I would urge people to find out how the proposed system would work.
AsŠI am campaigning against its introduction, I would urge electors to actively and decisively reject AV.
This is not because it would tend towards more hung parliaments but because the first past the vote system makes your choice, your only choice, a conscious statement of your personal intent.
Electors already find it difficult enough to make one choice without thinking of second or third or fourth preferences.
There may be a case for proportional representation to be made. The AV system is not that case. Please use your vote and make it clear to all politicians what you believe should happen.
Bernard McGuin
Deputy Chairman, Huddersfield Conservatives
Punishing the elderly
THE Examiner’s report last Thursday suggesting there had been a big freeze on the nation’s Council Tax stated that households across England will benefit it next month.
Technically true, but in Kirklees the council has seen fit to cancel a concession that was made some years ago whereby those over 65 received a reduction in the tax of 3%.
So those over 65, some in many cases least able to afford it, will, in fact, see their payments increase by 3%.
Not quite a freeze is it? And what excuse will the leader of the council come up with this time?
Perhaps those over 65 may freeze some candidates at the forthcoming local elections.
J G Bottomley
Cowlersley
Racing kills horses
BEFORE readers place a bet on the Grand National please take a moment to consider what your money may be funding.
Between 2000 and 2010, 31 horses died at the annual three-day meeting at Aintree. In 2010 alone, five horses were killed – a fact that went largely unreported amid the hype surrounding this event.
The punishing Grand National is Britain’s longest horse race, covering a distance of four miles and 856 yards. The horses are required to jump 30 formidable obstacles – some include perilous drops, ditches and sharp turns. Forty horses take part – an excessively crowded field – which adds to the risk of collisions and falls. Horse racing is funded by punters’ betting money and racecourse attendance fees. In other words, it’s financed by you.
As part of Animal Aid’s Horse Racing Awareness Week (April 3-9), a graphic billboard will be put up in Liverpool city centre to bring home the grim reality of what happens to Thoroughbreds forced to compete in races that confront them with lethal challenges.
Our message is simple. Don’t fund the cruelty and don’t bet on the Grand National. For you it is only a harmless flutter, but horses could pay with their lives.
To order a free Horse Racing information pack, please visit our website: www.animalaid.org.uk
Fiona Pereira
Campaigns Officer, Animal Aid
Pothole danger
I MUST say I agree with AA of Grange Moor in his/her letter published on March 25 in that one must keep checking the speedo and therefore is not watching the road in front at that time.
Unfortunately this is not the only time that full concentration on the road ahead is not what it ought to be. Now we have the infamous pothole and these also take one’s eyes off the area of road well in front of the vehicle that they should be scanning. If you need to make an insurance claim you cannot write ‘Cause of accident ... Kirklees Council.’
R.Liversidge
Marsden
