YEP Letters: March 11

Sir George: thanks for the music

Terry Maunder, Kirkstall

What a year so far for musical losses: Bowie, Paul Kantner (Jefferson Airplane), Dale Griffin (Mott The Hoople), John Bradbury (The Specials), Allen Toussaint, Natalie Cole to mention a few.

Now (Sir) George Martin. Already the politicians who probably don’t have a Beatles album between them are giving their praises; neither do they know, probably, of his many other projects. He will, of course, be remembered primarily for his production work with The Beatles. He produced over 700 single records in all, let alone albums.

So, thank you for Rubber Soul, Revolver, Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, the White Album, Abbey Road and all those singles: Hey Jude would undoubtedly be one of my Desert Island Discs were I to be asked.

Those are my favourite Beatles albums but all of them are special, not least for defining the 1960s (and I am hard to please).

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Let us take our Great Britain back

M Meeson, Leeds

In reply to Colin White (Yorkshire Evening Post March 9).

Remaining in the EU means we cannot take back control of our economy to ensure our businesses, our fishing industry, can prosper once again. The EU open border policy has contrived to an all out exodus from Syria, Afghanistan and many African countries, most not content in applying for asylum in the first free country they arrive in, but choosing the one that offers more benefits.

If we leave the EU we will still be trading, not only with Europe (the UK imports more from Europe than exports, so they will still need the UK) BUT we can then export/import from the world, from South Africa, Australia and New-Zealand, the Americas, like we used to before and after World War Two.

We can then decide to build our OWN nuclear power stations, smaller yet with a bigger capacity output than the white elephant that is the EDF fiasco.

If the Scottish First Minister threatens a new in/out referendum if the UK decides to leave the EU then let it be, at least the rest of the country will not be subsidising their free prescriptions and free university fees that the rest of us have to pay.

Let us take our Great Britain back, let us control our own destiny, our laws and our way of life, and not be dictated to by a bunch of despots in Europe.

In is the only answer

Alison Harris, Harrogate

Aren’t we all getting fed up with the politicians and their claims, counter-claims and point scoring. No explanations for us which tell us really what we stand to lose or gain after 23 June.

We all like to have food at reasonable prices and in the EU we can enjoy fruit and vegetables from Spain, French wine or Danish bacon and it won’t cost us a fortune. Without the EU we wouldn’t have had Aldi or Lidl! During my working life I was glad to know that my working rights were protected by the EU and couldn’t be eroded by our government. Now I am retired I could go and live in a warmer country in the EU and have no problems accessing my pension and receiving health care thanks to reciprocal arrangements within the EU.

If I am ill or injured while on holiday in EU I’ll get medical treatment. I can use my mobile phone in Europe and pay no more than I do here, thanks to recent EU legislation. Unfortunately all the uncertainty about our future has caused the fall in value of the pound against the euro and the dollar.

Holidays in Europe will be more expensive but if you choose to holiday in the UK you will be guaranteed a clean beach thanks to the EU. The existence of the EU has given us 70 years of peace in Europe after centuries of devastating wars. I hope this means my grandson won’t die in a European war. It’s the future of my grandchildren that concerns me. Currently they are free to travel wherever they like in the EU, they can go and work anywhere they like in the EU and they can study for free at European universities and not saddle themselves with enormous debt.

Generous funding to business from the EU has made it easier for young people to obtain apprenticeships. We are lucky in Yorkshire and Humberside that three of our MEPs have excellent voting records and a real commitment to looking after our interests at Brussels.

What’s not to like? It’s a no-brainer for me: IN is the only answer.

Cycle route over budget?

Alex Gillies, Leeds 16

I and the residents of Diadem Drive received notification on 19th March 2015 that work would commence on the CityConnect Cycle Route on Monday 7th April 2015, between the Highways Flats and 594 York Road for approximately eight weeks.

Eleven months later they’re still within a hundred yards of Diadem Drive and will be there for a considerable time yet, as they negotiate the bus lane and Killingbeck Retail Park. It’s approximately 15 miles between Seacroft, Leeds city and Bradford at a cost of £31 million equates to £2 million a mile. As less than a quarter of a mile has been achieved in 11 months at this end, is there a chance that this white elephant is going over budget and the rate payers left to pick up the tab?

Don’t be beaten by budget

Una Summerson, Head of Policy at Contact a Family

With the Chancellor George Osborne set to reveal details of the government’s budget on 16th March, many local families with disabled children will be fearing the worst.

Already more likely to be living in poverty because of the challenges of juggling work and caring for their child, families with disabled children have been hit time and time again by benefits cuts and welfare changes. Nearly a third (29 per cent) of families Contact a Family support told us they have already been affected by these changes over the last 12 months.

Well over half (58 per cent) said they would be unable to cope with an unexpected bill of £300 - highlighting the precarious financial situation many families we talk to are in and making them even more vulnerable to any further cuts to benefits and services.

We want to make sure that families with disabled children in the area get all the benefits they are entitled to help them with the extra costs of caring for a disabled child so they aren’t forced to go without essentials or into debt.

Don’t be beaten by the government’s budget, if you care for a child with a disability or additional needs and are struggling financially, call Contact a Family’s team of benefits and welfare experts on our free helpline - 0808 808 3555 – or visit www.cafamily.org.uk

Take pride in surroundings

Ernest Lundy, by email

I may be a bit old-fashioned, but like others I find the request to ‘Clean for the Queen’ more than a touch patronising.

Undoubtedly something should be done. I don’t suppose the present incumbent of Buckingham Palace has ever had to do cleaning of any kind, inside or out, so why bring the dear lady into the argument?

I remember once, while stationed in Germany, taking a short leave to Kolding in Denmark, my colleagues and I were amazed at the cleanliness. It was so obvious. But as for the streets of the UK, do parents and teachers impress upon children the need to be tidy? By not doing so it seems obvious to assume that some parents are already second or third generation litterers, so it is hardly surprising when their offspring continue the tradition.

Furthermore, the actions of a government which donates millions of pound of aid to overseas countries, astounds and dismays the electorate when it is patently obvious it would be better spent at home correcting our own problems. One has to ask why our government is so profligate, to the detriment of our own well-being.

One has to wonder if there are enough waste bins in which to dispose rubbish?

The answer once again, we are told, is down to lack of funds, as with so many other denied essentials.

Although ‘Clean for the Queen’ may for some, be a great idea and probably beneficial for a while, it would be much better if people cleaned for themselves and the benefit of neighbours, and the towns and cities in which they live. But unless children and, I’m sorry to say, many older people who should know better, take more pride in their surrounds, things are unlikely to improve.