YEP Letters: May 30

Thanks for ‘improving’ town hall

Tony Parry, Clarence Dock

I’d like to congratulate Leeds City Council on the magnificent job they’ve done converting the front of Leeds Town Hall into an advertising hoarding for the Leeds Triathlon.

This Grade 1 listed building has been looking very tired for many years now and is much improved by the giant poster showing the Brownlee brothers.

People who visit Leeds to see our town hall and take photographs of it, as many
do, will be surprised and delighted to have this opportunity to photograph the Brownlee brothers instead.

Perhaps, once the Triathlon is over, the current posters could be replaced by permanent ones showing the leader of the council or some other local celebrity.

Deeply shaming to lose these sculptures

Dr S Frank, Sheffield

I WAS a pupil at Wakefield Girls’ High School in the days when it was a direct grant school and Margaret Knott was the headmistress. Barbara Hepworth offered us the sculpture Galliard at half price, and the school was not in a position to find the money out of its own funds, so we had to raise the purchase price ourselves.

All senior school pupils were given a small amount of money and asked to increase it X-fold.

In addition, we held fundraising events, run by pupils and staff, including a spring fair.

Eventually we had raised sufficient money to pay our share, and we were so proud and happy to see the beautiful Galliard in our school.

I gather that pupils (and parents) also helped with some of the basic costs of Quiet Form, which Miss Knott generously gave back to the school in her will.

Thus the two sculptures are actually gifts from Barbara Hepworth and Margaret Knott, and also from past pupils and parents, to Wakefield Girls’ High School.

They were given by all of us in the confident expectation that they would stay in the school to celebrate our most famous pupil.

It is deeply shaming, as well as dishonourable, that these wonderful sculptures will be lost to the school and to Wakefield, especially now that Wakefield is home to the Hepworth gallery.

Advice to the new cyclists

Edward Grainger, Middlesbrough

NOTHING is ever as it seems. Before everyone gets too carried away with yet another successful Tour de Yorkshire cycle event, a word of caution to those about to take to Yorkshire’s roads on two wheels.

Recent correspondents to the paper illustrate the growing antagonism between motorists and cyclists (nothing new there) and a growing need to re-educate both factions before this lack of respect on the road gets completely out of hand.

As a cyclist with a motor vehicle, here are my perceptions for any new cyclists. Forget the notion that you can cycle everywhere on a cycle way or cycle path or expect every road to town or city to have a separate cycle lane. Britain, and especially the White Rose county, is light years behind countries like Holland and the rest of Europe. So far we have just played with it all.

Be constantly aware of aggressive, careless and dangerous drivers. Keep your attention at all times on the road ahead to avoid the worst of the potholes.

Be courteous and respectful to drivers.

Good luck to all those about to experience the thrill of propelling your own body to wherever and enjoy the freedom that comes with a bicycle.

Orgreave: Who was to blame?

Ron Firth, Campsall.

To those joining the bandwagon calling for the waste of more taxpayers’ monies in dragging through the embers of the Orgreave riots I say this: the facts were quite clear that Arthur Scargill having removed Ted Heath from office, was looking to do the same to Margaret Thatcher, both of whom had been democratically elected to run the country.

To achieve his political aims, Scargill was using striking miners and others in an attempt to close the coking plant and, once again, bring misery to householders and disruption to vital energy supplies.

The police were at Orgreave to:

a) Protect the right to work of the Orgreave workforce; b) To protect and maintain our energy supplies and; c) To ensure that the ballot box wishes of the majority could not be overthrown by a minority.

At Orgreave, where violence was predicted, there were more police casualties than picket casualties and, it is stressed, the police were defending our interests.

If, as is suggested, senior police officers massaged some of the evidence, then they should have been dealt with at the time – as should the instigator of the violence, Mr Scargill.

Thanks for help after dad’s fall

Mrs R Pearce, Morley

My father was unfortunate enough to have a nasty fall on Saturday May 15 near to the B&M store in Morley town centre.

Two young ladies came to his aid, called an ambulance and stayed with him until it arrived. On behalf of both of us I would like to thank them for their actions.

In a world where it seems like everyone thinks of number one it restores our faith in human nature knowing there are people like them out there who are willing to help others.

EU giving back what’s ours

Phil Hanson, Baildon.

THE recent pleading by the artistic set really takes the biscuit.

Those who profit from
multi-million pound contracts with the BBC are now telling us that the EU is vital because of the funding they get.

Well just as the immoral TV tax is a rip-off in the name of free speech, the EU is only giving us back our money.

The luvvie set would do well to remember this.

I am minded to recall the words of Machiavelli. “There is nothing more difficult to plan, more doubtful of success, nor more dangerous to manage, than the creation of a new system.

“For the initiator has the enmity of all who would profit by the preservation of the old institution and merely lukewarm defenders in those who gain by the new ones.”

Lies, lies and more EU lies

Lindon Dove, Tingley

‘Give us some facts’ is the heartfelt cry of voters in the June referendum.

The two sides try to oblige as they trot out one statistic after another.

So why are so many people still professing to be uncertain?

The two definite facts are the amount of money we pay into the EU and receive back in rebate and the total number of immigrants in receipt of NHS cards.

Surely there are more facts than just these? Well no. The reality is that only these two facts fit the dictionary definitions.

All the others are forecasts, suppositions and quite frankly, guesswork.

For every fact claimed by the remain camp, an equally valid counter claim is put forward by the leave side. Neither side can prove beyond reasonable doubt that theirs is the definitively correct fact with the exception of those above.

It would seem that voters will have to depend on the limited number of known facts and the implications that both have for the future or go with the side they trust the most. We were lied to by Harold Wilson in the last referendum.

We were lied to by Tony Blair over the Iraq war. We are being lied to by the present Government over David Cameron’s negotiations.

When you add to this the proven fact that British sovereignty has been totally eroded, the decision seems to have been made for us.

Well done world champ Nicola

Stewart Pinder, via Facebook

Well done Nicola Adams, flying the flag for Leeds, Yorkshire, and Britain!

Fabulous achievement! Just reward for all the hard work and effort! You go girl.