Letters

RUTH Campbell's comments concerning Paula Yates and Bob Geldof (Echo, Mar 9) are the usual unsympathetic response from someone who has not experienced depression - especially following bereavement.

If it was, as she suggested, a simple case of Paula picking herself up following the death of her much-loved partner, why didn't she do just that?

Unfortunately, depression is not as simple as that.

Perhaps Ruth Campbell would like to explain just how you are supposed to pick yourself up after the death of someone you love and how to stop feeling sorry for yourself when all you want is your loved one back?

Does she also have a solution on how to stop the feelings of guilt that are felt following sudden death? Does she think simple advice such as 'think of the children' really helps?

The lack of understanding and stupid remarks do not help anybody suffering from depression and only add to the guilt and feeling of loss. - Christine Carter, Darlington.

THE WELSH

THE people of Wales should pay no mind to a mere television personality knocking them. Many of them build themselves up by making controversial comments.

As Anne Robinson might say in her put-on sarcastic tone to a Weakest Link contestant: "You obviously know nothing about British history". Well, she could be such contestant herself.

Out of all those inhabiting these British Isles, the Welsh have more right to their ways and customs by having the proud distinction of being the only ones of the Old Briton bloodline. No Roman, Viking, Saxon or Norman ever completely subdued them. - GH Grieveson, Richmond.

THE BUDGET

I HAVE nothing but praise for the present Government and wish to express my gratitude for the good things they have done for me.

My wife and I each received our £10 Christmas bonus, our fuel allowance of £200 and we no longer pay the TV licence, which is worth £2 a week to us. Now we have a decrease of £55 in car excise duty and will receive an increase of £8 a week in old age pension.

Your commentary on the Budget (Echo, Mar 8) suggested there were no measures to help farmers.

This appears to me to be quite deceptive as all the benefits that I have received have also been received by the farmers.

They have not been excluded from anything. In fact, long before the Budget, they were receiving subsidised fuel and now their tractors are tax free. Perhaps it was the farmers' tears that started the recent floods.

There is a lot of sympathy for the plight of the farmers. Unlike mad cow disease, foot-and-mouth is not self-inflicted. The Government will compensate the farmers for their losses.

Will there be any sympathy for the taxpayers? The people who have to pay that compensation. - J Simon, Peterlee.

FYLINGDALES

WHEN are some of your readers going to get into the real world?

Don't blame the Americans for the targeting of Yorkshire because of the facilities they have there. Yorkshire has always been a target for our enemies, whether it be the wartime Chain Home Radar system, the ill-fated post-war Rotor Radar system or the seat of regional government in the event of a nuclear war.

Even without our American friends, and make no mistake they are our friends, Yorkshire would still be targeted because important British facilities exist and I think that I would prefer to stick with the Americans than wait for the French or Germans to give us any warning even if it is only three minutes. Yorkshire will still feel the heat if they hit Scarborough instead of Fylingdales. - Ron Young, Stockton.

COUNCIL TAX

FOR 18 years, our politicians blamed the Conservative government for the rises in rates and council tax.

I live in an area with a Labour town council, a Labour borough council, a Labour county council and a Labour Government.

My council tax is to rise this year by 6.8 per cent when inflation is at 2.1 per cent. Would local councillors please tell me who is to blame this time? - G Jones, Ferryhill.

MINIMUM WAGE

THE National Minimum Wage increase to £4.10 is good news for employees on low wages but no comfort whatsoever to self-employed people who have just started up in business.

Most people who begin self-employment take very little income from their business in the first few years. An increase in the Personal Allowances by the Chancellor in his Budget would have given a welcome boost to self-employed people.

The Chancellor made many references to hard-working families and how he is helping those on the lower income scale, and quite rightly so.

But he decided to ignore the hard-working self-employed person who often gets very little personal reward. - Peter Troy, Chairman Darlington Branch Federation of Small Businesses.

EUROPE

WE have the EU laws interfering with the British way of life and look at the result. Farming in crisis, fishermen limited to their catch, the legal system an absolute shambles, thousands of asylum seekers costing taxpayers a fortune. Is Brussels trying to bring us to our knees with the help of this Government? - Mrs J Woolley, Bishop Auckland.

THE appalling situation and the catastrophic effect on the farming community caused by the foot-and-mouth epidemic is the result of excessive regulation from the European Union that has resulted in the closure of many hundreds of small and medium-sized slaughterhouses the length and breadth of the country.

It is logical and desirable that the local farming community should be served by local abattoirs to avoid the risk of spreading animal disease.

Compliance with EU policy is crippling the agricultural industry in the UK. - Chris Williamson, City of Durham.