Letters - July 11, 2017

FRACKINGSolidarity needed '¨to beat frackingWith reference to Tim Gavell's article '˜Councillors join in anti-frack lock-on' (The Gazette, July 4), I say congratulations to them.
County Councillor Gina Dowding and Fylde resident Nick Danby at the 13-person lock-on at Preston New RoadCounty Councillor Gina Dowding and Fylde resident Nick Danby at the 13-person lock-on at Preston New Road
County Councillor Gina Dowding and Fylde resident Nick Danby at the 13-person lock-on at Preston New Road

Fracking is considered a local issue rather than a national one and Cuadrilla have been moaning that folk from out of town should not be at the Preston New Road site.

But fracking should be seen as a national issue.

Irreversible pollution of the aquifers (which contain the groundwater), any earthquake, the massive increase in traffic from all over the country used to transport hazardous substance to and from the site to the hopelessly inadequate treatment and disposal sites - all will affect an area much wider than the site.

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Several instances of vehicles being driven at speed towards blockaders, in full view of the police,backed up by video evidence, have resulted in zero charges, let alone convictions.

Meanwhile magistrates have thrown the book at protesters for obstruction of highway, while numerous planning breaches and road closures necessitated by heavy goods vehicles and police vans need no investigation.

Because the oil and gas industry see it as a quick return on investment they have used the old boy/pal network to influence government ministers - and we have learned through repeated scandals that many MPs are money driven.

Solidarity and raising awareness are essential if we are going to beat fracking. It is also a vote winner across north England, the East Midlands and the Tory heartlands of Surrey, Sussex and Dorset.

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Well done Labour for being the only major party to declare it will ban fracking.

Shout it from rooftops.

Royston Jones

Anchorsholme

GRENFELL

Shame for cashing in on this tragedy

A lot of people should hang their heads in shame for cashing in on the Grenfell tower block tragedy, for making money or causing disruption to the wider community with their bully boy tactics.

However, we all know they won’t because they are that entrenched with a chip on their shoulder.

It’s inconceivable that after those people died in unimaginable circumstances that a mob forced their way into the council offices, then people who were interviewed spewed their vitriolic bile and didn’t even live there.

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Then we have at least one remanded in custody for claiming to have lived there and was given money, food, hotels etc.

Then we find out that some of the flats had been sublet and the council declared an amnesty for the guilty parties in exchange for the names of the people they sublet to.

And finally the Justice for Grenfell or whatever they are called have demanded a person to chair the investigation with “Street cred”, not someone who was in their words born with a silver spoon in their mouth.

If this, perish the thought, had happened in a block anywhere else it would have been a totally different story.

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Do not bow down to them but ensure time and resources are used to find all the reasons why this tragedy happened, and try to give some closure and compensation to the poor genuine souls who perished.

Mr PG

Address supplied

ECONOMY

The sooner Carney 
goes the better

Bank of England Governor Mark Carney has now decided that the UK’s personal debt level is too high, despite it being his policy of low interest rates that has created the situation.

Four years ago, I wrote to Mr Carney asking how long he intended to penalise savers in favour of those who over-lent, over-borrowed, and overspent.

The reply was as follows: “During a period of economic downturn, when households are reluctant to spend, a low interest rate can encourage spending, which is crucial to economic recovery. Conversely, a high interest rate has the opposite effect, providing an opportunity to save.”

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So, low interest rates and cheap money were part of a Bank of England strategy to encourage consumer spending, which has resulted in the massive debt Carney is now complaining about. The sooner we pack him off back to Canada the better!

Paul Rouse

Via email

LUCOZADE

Consumers prefer the taste of sugar

At the beginning of April, Lucozade Ribena Suntory reduced the sugar in their Lucozade Orange drink by more than 50 per cent, and replaced it with artificial sweeteners.

Lucozade customers have been outraged, and have described the new taste as ‘vile’ and ‘disgusting’ on social media.

We’ve been tracking the complaints on social media during this time, and there have been more than 3,500 complaints about the new recipe.

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Many type 1 diabetics are also unhappy because it means they have to drink more of it to treat their medical condition.

There was also no need for the change. There are already a number of Lucozade zero sugar products available. All this does is take away the right to choose from their customers, effectively treating them like children.

The recipe change has been a disaster for Lucozade Ribena Suntory, and they will undoubtedly lose a large number of customers because of this change. This should serve as a warning to other food and soft drink manufacturers.

The lesson to be learnt is that consumers prefer the taste of natural sugar over artificial sweeteners.

Brook Whelan

Chief executive
People against Sugar Tax