YEP letters: December 20

Today in our selection of your opinions and letters you discuss car fumes, investment in railways and standing up for Holbeck.
Traffic congestion, jam, queueTraffic congestion, jam, queue
Traffic congestion, jam, queue

Taxis vital in fighting air pollution

Mrs V Bedford, Pudsey.

THE Council needs to get its act together regarding air pollution. There are more deaths related to air pollution than ever before.

Taxi drivers are the real culprits leaving their diesel engines running.

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I asked one taxi driver to turn off his engine outside Morrisons while he ate his sandwich last week.

Needless to say he did not.

Leeds City Council needs to educate people on the effect on the environment diesel fumes cause.

Council words are falling on stony ground

Chris Sharp, Leeds

Leeds City council under fire again (YEP, December 13). I’m afraid the biblical line comes to mind, ‘and some fell on stony ground’. Leeds City Council is and always has been, clueless to the thoughts and feelings of the people they rule over. It’s easy to get outside contractors in. Building ridiculous cycle lanes just about sums them up. Looks nice but not much use!

Karen Matthews should get a job

Peggy Morris, Pudsey, Leeds

Karen Matthews says she has found God, and has found a line in the Bible which says “God loves you”

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There is also a line in the Bible which say”s “God helps those who help themselves” so it might be a good idea if she got a job, and started paying back the money it cost the tax-payer to find her supposedly lost daughter

Opinion seems to be moving

John Cole, Oakroyd Terrace, Baildon, Shipley

Those in favour of “Brexit” assert that on June 23 the country spoke, and spoke with a clear voice that the UK should leave the European Union.

The hard “Leave” campaigners have a strong preference for minimising the role of parliament, with no space for the law courts to assert the rule of law – and certainly no second referendum.

“Remainers” such as me have been told that we should “shut up” and “move on”.

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Now however, comes evidence of the tectonic 
plates of public opinion shifting.

Leeds had voted to remain, in the referendum but Sunderland on June 23 voted 60 per cent for Brexit.

Recently though, the local paper in the Sunderland area carried out a poll of nearly 3,000 of its readers. And it showed that 73 per cent of those consulted would now vote “remain”.

This represents a huge 33 per cent swing from “Out” to “In”. (This swing is larger even that the swing to the Liberal Democrats in the Richmond Park by-election).

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The urgency - stridency even – of the Brexit ideologues is hereby easier to understand. As the truth emerges – and Brexit lies are exposed – there is desperation on their part to hold on to the June 23 result before total “buyers’ remorse” overtakes it.

Investment needed in trains

Mel Smart, Farsley

There have been quite a few complaints lately regarding the railways and in particular the local franchise of Northern Rail. People do not seem to realise that the railways were privatised in 1993 into Franchises.

Each of these were allocated a number of train coaches to run their services and none has been built since.

The Northern fleet of trains were built in the 1980s and the question to ask yourself is “would I drive a car 35 years old.”

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I suspect not. That is to say they are not dangerous but do take a lot of maintaining.

The reason why Northern Rail is a shambles can be put down to the Thatcher Government followed by the Major Government which ran the railways down and did not invest in them.

All the train building companies were shut down through a lack of orders and with them the expertise. The electric trains which run on the Aire Valley Services were built in

Spain to a German design.

The train service will remain as it is until such time as the Government decides to build some more. Bear in mind that Franchises are not allowed to own any vehicles nor are they allowed to own Stations.

Who will speak up for Holbeck

DS Boyes, Upper Rodley Lane, Leeds

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Yet another plea for help from a Holbeck resident regularly subjected to all kinds of the most foul abuse thanks to Leeds City Council’s Red Light Zone status being imposed there without any 
consultation, vote or right of appeal.

Bad is this obviously is, even worse if the apparent total loss of ‘democratic’ representation in Holbeck?

The lady in question says no Labour Councillor will say or do anything to help and with the deafening silence from the Civic Hall, neither will the council leader. The Labour MP for Leeds Central in whose constituency Holbeck lies says nowt either. Also, what of the ‘opposition’ groups on Leeds City Council – Conservative, Lib Dem, Greens and Morley Independents? Why have they not expressed any concerns, as scoring points off Labour on every other subject under the sun is normally par for the course!

Although the greatest fear of all, is that this scheme for Holbeck was actually authorised in secret by the then Conservative Home Secretary, now Prime Minister Theresa May. Perhaps a statement from 10 Downing Street is needed to clear the air.

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