Letters - January 9, 2017

ENERGYSettle down and let the fracking begin I see that work has started on the proposed fracking site on Preston New Road.
A group of protesters gather across from a new fracking site, off A583, Preston New Road, Little Plumpton.A group of protesters gather across from a new fracking site, off A583, Preston New Road, Little Plumpton.
A group of protesters gather across from a new fracking site, off A583, Preston New Road, Little Plumpton.

No doubt there will be a further clamour of objections based on more unfounded “facts” following the Advertising Standards Authority’s (ASA) actions with Friends of the Earth and the acceptance by Friends of the Earth that their various claims about the dangers/damages have been accepted as unfounded.

The ASA took more than 14 months to come to their conclusion, and it was based on extensive research and discussion with many independent academics and experts. So the ASA has not reached their conclusions lightly.

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Risk and danger are all around us every day in every aspect of the lives of our families and ourselves, but we can mitigate against their effects by taking sensible precautions.

All companies in this country need to take precautions to ensure the safety of their staff, customers, and users of their various products and I am confident that Cuadrilla, and the various regulators, will take steps to identify and mitigate potential risks.

So let us now settle down and let Cuadrilla and the other fracking companies, overseen by the various regulators, start creating new jobs, and producing an indigenous supply of low cost energy.

Name and address supplied

ENERGY

No more than we can expect from FoE

Interesting to note that Friends of the Earth “spokesperson” seemed to totally rubbish the ruling from the Advertising Standards Authority in the Wednesday evening news on BBC North West.

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This is no more than we have come to expect from an ill-informed group of rabid protestors trying to bully people who have the temerity to think differently to them. I was surprised that their leaflet made no mention of all the flatulent cows that contribute so much to destroying the ozone layer!

What happens when we have no heat or light? I am delighted to note that the test drilling is now going ahead.

Name and address supplied

EUROPE

Diplomat’s exit sets alarm bells ringing

Sir Ivan Rogers’ decision to quit as the UK’s ambassador to the EU before Brexit talks begin at the end of March raises alarm bells, not just about the forthcoming talks themselves, but about the current Government’s ability to actually proceed with these talks.

Sir Ivan is regarded as one of the leading experts on the EU and, without him, Brexit becomes an almost impossible task.

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David Cameron’s original decision not to have a ‘plan B’ in place for Brexit, not only displayed political arrogance taken to a ridiculous extreme, but arguably indicated the actual scale of difficulty in putting together an alternative package to the European Project.

Sir Ivan has already indicated that it would take at least ten years to negotiate new trade terms with Europe.

However, the UK has become so integrated and assimilated into EU legislation itself that even knowing where to begin to unravel such complexity will be a major operation.

It is certainly something that could not be resolved within two years from the triggering of Article 50.

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We forget that our politicians are often only figure-heads for their departments, and it is people like Sir Ivan who actually have to do the real work.

And Brexit will surely fail without an army of Sir Ivans in place.

Paul Dodenhoff

via email

ANIMALS

Help vital work of our pet sanctuaries

Now the festive season is over, no doubt our already over-crowded animal sanctuaries will be experiencing an influx of unwanted pets bought at Christmas by irresponsible people who now wish to pass the responsibility for these poor creatures’ future on to someone else.

If only more people would stop buying on impulse and put some serious thought into what owning a pet entails, including the expense, before buying one, then these tragedies would not happen.

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Cat Rescue, Easterleigh, Cats Paws, Furry Tails and the RSPCA Home are full to bursting with these unfortunate creatures 365 days a year, and rely totally on the generosity of the general public to feed and care for them.

Please support these hard-working charities throughout the year. We really need them. They are a vital and only safety net for all creatures great and small until a new secure and loving home can be found for them.

Cash donations as well as goods for their charity shops will always be most welcome.

Josephine Harwood

Moor Park Avenue

Bispham

POLITICS

People have had enough of the old

What an incredible year 2016 was for politics. In the UK we had and won the EU referendum with 17.4 million voting to leave and, in the US, Donald Trump won the election to become the next President.

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The clear message to the old establishment is that the people have had enough of them and are demanding real change.

In Britain, and despite the Brexit vote, the Government is still not listening to the people and are carrying on as per normal – council tax rises, massive business rates rises, railway fair increases, defence cuts and the greenbelt under threat. They appear to be in denial of the result in June and are reluctant to follow the will of the people.

In 2017 it is our job to hold the establishment to account and to get our Prime Minister to invoke Article 50 by the end of March this year, without further delays.

Philip Griffiths

North West President

UK Independence Party

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