24/05/06

According to him, LibDem and Labour councillors should be banned from being members of the North East Assembly and the EU Committee of the Regions (CoR), while Tory councillors have his blessing to continue as members. He believes only Tory councillors should claim back expenses they incur for attending meetings - sheer hypocrisy. Since Wear Valley was formed in 1974, the LibDems have provided the only viable opposition to Labour. We have twice put Labour out of office, and could do again next year. The Tories don't have councillors here - the most they ever had was three. We do oppose Labour when we think they're wrong, but we support them when we think they're right. Coun Brown and I are two of three North-East representatives on the CoR. We are in different parties and disagree on some issues, but are united in seeking what is best for the region. The visit to Bishop Auckland by the CoR had nothing to do with my election to it in a national ballot of LibDem councillors. Mr Tague has no evidence of his ridiculous claims. Smearing opponents with unsubstantiated accusations brings politics into further disrepute with a public increasingly alienated from the democratic process. - Councillor Chris Foote Wood, Leader, Wear Valley District Council LibDem Group.

FOREIGN NATIONALS

AS a nation we have always shown compassion to people fleeing here from persecution abroad. They have invariably been grateful for their welcome and have expressed their gratitude by settling down, working hard and assimilating.

Think of the influx of French Protestant refugees following the revocations of the Edict of Nantes in 1695, or of the many Polish and Czech people who came here in 1939 and were indispensable to our war effort. Indeed, historians agree that without the Polish and Czech pilots fighting for us we could not have won the Battle of Britain in 1940.

Our present situation, however, is unprecedented. We are being literally invaded by foreign nationals - not refugees but undesirables, including at least 400,000 (probably an underestimate) who have no business being here at all.

One shocking effect is that all new arrivals are seen as suspect and there have been some appalling cases of genuine refugee families threatened with repatriation and some no doubt where the authorities have carried out this threat. This is not good enough. Those who assure us that there is no cause for concern or alarm are fooling themselves and trying to fool us, and we shouldn't let them. - Tony Kelly, Crook.

FOREIGN CRIMINALS

THERE seems to be a bit of xenophobia behind the reaction to the foreign convicts fiasco, particularly among those who argue that all foreign criminals should be deported, regardless of the seriousness of their crimes.

In Britain, we do not sentence people to be tortured or executed, even for the most heinous crimes, and if we pass such a sentence by proxy by deporting someone to a country where that will be their fate, we cannot wash our hands with remarks like "Not our problem" or "They should have thought of that before they broke our laws".

Even in cases where deported ex-convicts will not be mistreated in their home countries, there is a curious double standard at work. Except for those guilty of the most serious crimes, prisoners must eventually be released.

However, as your columnist, Helen Cannam, notes (Echo, May 18), our prison system is not geared towards rehabilitation, and many ex-prisoners will re-offend. If they are deported, the potential victims of their future crimes will be the honest citizens of another country, but not us Brits. So that's all right, then. - Pete Winstanley, Durham.

TRANSPORT

THE serious issues facing the North-East's transport network have been well documented. The need for the A1 to be upgraded and for a direct rail link between Sunderland and the South have both been hot topics recently.

So, as regional manager for the Institution of Civil Engineers in the North-East, I am encouraged that although the new Transport Secretary, Douglas Alexander, retains his predecessor's combined role as Secretary of State for Transport and Scotland, transport has been recognised as a key issue by the Government.

Recently, there have been stories in the local media about a controversial bus lane in Newcastle city centre and new tram-like buses in York. Better trains and an expansion of airports in the North have been called for to help tackle the North/South divide and take pressure off the South-East. Also, Government proposals for road user charging have been in the headlines, with reports from the M4 in South Wales, Durham city centre and rural Scotland on the BBC's 10 o'clock news. I hope that the prominence that transport is currently being given by the new Secretary of State continues as the importance of this issue to the economic wellbeing of the country in general, and the North-East in particular, cannot be underestimated. - Stephen Larkin, Regional Manager, Institution of Civil Engineers, North-East.

WATER SHORTAGES

HOW can the small island that we live in, with its numerous rivers which send billions of gallons of water into the surrounding areas, have a drought?

Some of those rivers are massive (Thames, Severn, etc). Travel from north to south of this island and you pass over many bridges crossing these rivers. In the North-East we have the Tyne, Wear and Tees. Their deposit into the North Sea would be regarded as magnificent in countries that are mainly deserts. Why cannot this water be diverted into the regions which are already banning hosepipes and stating there will be a drought even before the summer season has begun? Just how much rain is to be needed in this small island to satisfy the population with sufficient water? - E Reynolds, Wheatley Hill.

RUBBISH TO BOOT

I THINK it's about time Wear Valley District Council got its act together and supplied the remaining number of residents who are still waiting for a brown bin to put their garden waste in.

I approached one of my council representatives about the brown bins and he told me - I unfortunately happen to be an invalid - that I could always take my rubbish to the tip. I only have one problem with that. I don't put rubbish inside my car and he is too big to put into my car boot, or I would have been pleased to oblige. Why not provide the same for all? - G Hall, Crook.

BOOZE CRUISE

I THINK your television critic, Steve Pratt, requires a large dose of laughing gas or a humour transplant (Echo, May 22). Myself and friends thought The Booze Cruise III: The Scattering (ITV1) was a very funny programme, and a refreshing change to the usual filth and garbage that passes nowadays for entertainment.We were able to sit down as a family and thoroughly enjoy a Sunday evening's entertainment without squirming with embarrassment at the usual offerings. Sorry Steve, I think you've lost it. - Ed Southgate, Stockton.

DISRESPECTFUL PARENTS

AS a parent of a child who attends Springfield School, recently relocated to the Education Village in Darlington, I am disgusted at the lack of respect for the environment shown by a lot of parents.

Walking to school on Tuesday, I was dismayed to find some grass verges in Bishop Close are almost entirely mud, caused by the carelessness and disrespect of parents who insist on driving their kids to school and parking on these verges.

The number of parents driving their kids to school is an absolute joke. Most live within walking distance, I'm sure.

Our children were recently given a "Medal Motion" booklet to record how they get to school over a period of three weeks. Those managing to walk/cycle/use public transport for more than ten days receive a gold medal. Surely most parents would want their kids to attain this? So, why continue to drive them to school?

Environmental issues aside, there is a safety issue here. The primary school entrance is on a small side street and crossing the road is very difficult as you can't see cars coming for the amount of people carriers blocking the view. So come on parents, stop being utter disrespectful fools - Melissa Wilson, Darlington.

HURWORTH SCHOOL

THE community of Hurworth School is entering a critical period which will determine whether it will continue to prosper in its rural setting or possibly become a target for closure again at some point in the future.(Echo, May 22)

We have already seen that academic success alone is not sufficient to ensure our school's future, so we believe this will only be fully secured by significant investment in the infrastructure of the site.

The on-going school consultation is a significant move in ensuring the whole school community has its say on how this is to develop to the benefit of all concerned.

Any proposed investment in infrastructure will build upon the school's academic success and bring the buildings in line with 21st Century expectations.

This should act as a lesson to those at Darlington Borough Council, who seem to believe that investment in buildings alone will deliver academic improvement. They should by now realise that quality of leadership, teaching and community support are paramount in delivering excellence.

I find it incredulous that a town suffering such mediocre secondary school performance should ignore the lessons learned at Hurworth. - Ian Holme, Hurworth, Darlington.

TRAFFIC PROBLEMS

REGARDING your article on traffic problems on the west side of Darlington (Echo, May 23). One short-term solution would be to create a park-and-ride scheme at Faverdale.

Such a scheme would relieve the town centre of traffic and allow council employees an easy run into their free parking places at the town hall.

The word "cost" would rear its ugly head, but surely if funds can be found to destroy the town centre, then cash can be found for a parking area. - Jim Rishworth, Darlington.