REGULAR readers of the Examiner’s letters page may recall that for some time past I have been pointing out that the gap between the public and their politicians was been ever widening.
MPs and all the main political parties have only reflected their own party’s beliefs and repeatedly deny any chance of the public having a much needed voice.
Remember the ‘bigot’ dismissal of the elderly lady who just happened to voice an opinion which many members of the public shared.
Remember the blank denials of any referenda (even the promised ones) to deny the public voice a hearing.
The election of George Galloway in Bradford, reportedly caused by his appeal to a small but growing section of society should send shivers down the spines of both MPs and the general public.
The dam wall of public frustration, ignored by politicians for so long, is now cracking and if still left unaddressed could have long lasting and indeed catastrophic consequences for the United Kingdom.
It is a rejection of all the three main political parties and the values they espouse.
Their values are not shared by the majority of the population and if anyone thinks we can continue as we are they deluding themselves.
The election to Parliament of a person by a small minority group does not, in my mind, make him an MP in the meaning we have had of for centuries.
An MP should be someone who has the support of and represents the majority of the people in his constituency.
If groups in other areas follow suit and the dam breaks we shall eventually have the same fragmented system of governance as many of the countries we have pilloried and vilified over the years.
Oh! Hang on a minute, maybe we have already achieved this. Perhaps we just need to retitle our MPs.
It is certainly anathema for any politician to take one single step back from the impregnable power base they have built up and believe is their right. Maybe it is just too hard for them to swallow their pride, retrace their steps, reduce the chasm and begin to build bridges with the electorate. The alternative could be fragmentation of a nation as civil wars break out.
The Parliamentary system we have had for centuries no longer meets the needs of the nation of today.
Our society has changed and moved on The men in tights in Westminster have not and no longer represent or reflect the majority view.
We need a root and branch reform of governance and we need it now.
John Langford
Lepton
Political blame game
THE facts and insights provided by people like Mr R A Vant are generally accurate and relevant and this is reflected in the speed with which known Tories rush to try and rubbish what he has to say.
Mr R J Bray is among the worst offenders. Sometimes he seeks to bolster his views by deploying partial truths.
For example, he says (Mailbag, March 31) that Labour could have put a stop to the bankers’ excesses.
But he does not explain that all political parties – the Conservatives included – did not want to kill the goose that, at the time, was laying the golden eggs.
Hindsight shows the goose had a death wish and was willing to drag the rest of society down with it.
With the benefit of that hindsight the Labour government took the measures needed to support the national economy.
At the time the Tories changed direction nationally so they could rubbish the government. Even so, they failed to win the General Election with the result we have the disaster known as the coalition.
The Tories should now recognise that Labour’s economic policies were working whereas their own are clearly failing.
They dare not be so honest. Instead, the Tory government is more interested in sucking up to its paymasters in the city and continuing to apply its dogmatic policies than in acting in the national interest.
Mr Bray tries to dismiss relevant information by insulting electors by saying they do not understand the figures.
But the figures are shorthand for real suffering. I am sure people do understand if their spouse, their child or their grandchild has been thrown out of work through no fault of their own. They understand jobs have been destroyed and too few new ones have been created for them to go to.
They understand our services depend on a healthy economy. But both the economy and our services are now suffering because of the present government’s policies.
The Tories have played an unjustified blame game since before the General Election.
They continue to try and blame the last government for our current difficulties. They would, wouldn’t they.
But that blame game is fast losing resonance. The time is approaching when the government will have to accept responsibility for the mess it has created.
Michael Hutchinson
Mirfield
£100 dog licences
DOG fouling we are told is becoming an epidemic (Examiner, March 28).
It has been an epidemic for years.
My first letters were sent in over 30 years ago and if the council had taken action to stop all this filth on our streets, in our parks and playing fields we would not be in this mess today.
I repeat like I did in my last letter. Bring back the dog licences, but this time to £100 a year. This would cut down the population of dogs.
Also, when is someone gong to start inflicting heavy fines on all owners who do not clean up the mess their pets have made?
I think we have four or five dog wardens only. These few cannot cope with the thousands of people who are strolling along with their dogs three or four timers a day. We have lots of men out of work, so give them a job to catch these sloppy owners. Our council would not regret this move if they want to clean up.
H Barrowclough
Waterloo
Overflowing road drains
WHAT do we pay our council taxes for I ask? I refer to the number of uncleaned drains on the road.
I am sure a lot of readers will have been splashed or had to walk round puddles left by standing water due to uncleaned grates. How many drains are blocked with a river running alongside?
Not to mention the ruts and holes in the road caused by running water. Haven’t they heard of erosion?
So come on Highways department, get on to Kirklees and save yourself and us a bit of money.
Can’t the grate cleaners be supplied with a fault sheet or something on which they can report a blocked drain? What about their line managers, department heads and ultimately the chief executive.
What about our councillors!
I broached this subject to my local councillor. He asked me to make a list and give it to him and he would see that they were cleaned.
I did this but what happened? Nothing.
G Watson
Holmfirth
Castle Hill opinions
REGARDING the photo displayed of the iconic tower hill dated March 23 and the letter written by SW Bower of Hall Bower in response to my letter and others on the subject of a new pub on this hallowed area.
The 87% mentioned was form a poll held via the paper.
We voice our opinions in the Examiner. As far as the green belt is concerned, apparently the government may be proposing that certain green belt areas should be developed for housing and other amenities, thus creating jobs.
Any variation to the present scenario of Castle Hill will be up to those who have it in their powers to do so.
Having said that, I am still in favour of the development of the pub on the site with the associated benefits and social interaction it would produce.
The pub, if built, would hardly intrude on the area as it now stands.
The access area would need attention but it would enhance the availability of this extremely picturesque area for all those wanting to visit which I have no doubt would certainly outnumber those of the opposite viewpoint as indeed the poll featured in our paper made clear!
David S Bull
Skelmanthorpe
Help diabetes sufferers
THERE is no doubt that a great many of your readers will suffer form Type 1 or Type 2 diabetes.
Unfortunately we have found that many people with diabetes feel they do not have enough information to help them with their diabetes. With this in mind, the Insulin Dependant Diabetes Trust (IDDT) has produced a free booklet called Understanding Your Diabetes which provides this information in non-medical language to help people understand their treatment.
One of the important aspects of the treatment of diabetes is eating the appropriate diet but we have found that many people do not have enough information about what they should and can eat.
Our free booklet called Diabetes – Everyday Eating helps with this as it contains 28 days of menus of everyday, affordable meals and much more.
Having diabetes may mean a stay in hospital, either at diagnosis or as a result of the management of the condition and its complications. Government statistics show that errors in medication or treatment are more likely to occur to people with diabetes while they are in hospital so to help avoid this IDDT has produced a free Hospital Passport for people with diabetes to take into hospital with them. It will provide hospital staff with vital information about the person with diabetes and how their diabetes is managed.
It aims to make it easier for people to be treated and for people to receive the treatment they want.
IDDT produces a wide variety of free information.
For more information about the work of IDDT or to receive your free copy of Understanding Your Diabetes, Diabetes – Everyday Eating and/or the Hospital Passport contact IDDT. Phone 01604 622837 or email martin@iddtinternational.org.
Martin Hirst
PR Manager, IDDT
