Letters - March 2, 2017
The birdsong gets louder every morning, the sun is trying so hard to warm up the earth, the crocus and snowdrops are finishing their late winter displays, primroses are in full bloom and daffodils are heralding the arrival of spring.
Hyacinths and tulips are peeping through the soil. Well, they are in our neck of the woods here in North Shore.
However, this time of year also brings me dismay.
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Hide AdYou see, we have a nice little display of daffodils against our front garden wall adjacent to the public footpath.
Every morning since last Monday, as the schoolchildren pass our house going to Warbreck school, some take great delight in tearing the daffodils out of the ground and scattering them on the footpath. Some with the bulbs still attached.
I recall that last year Stanley Park suffered the same mindless vandalism.
Does this happen in other parts of our town, or is it just some of the Warbreck school pupils?
Mike Picewicz
Warbreck Hill Road
Blackpool
‘CESSPOOL’
Closing their eyes to poverty in the town
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Hide AdI really don’t know where Stay Blackpool people and others look when they walk around the town. Yes there are good parts, Stanley Park is lovely, the promenade has been greatly improved and we have the delightful Grand Theatre.
But I ask the people who promote Blackpool to walk two or three streets back from the promenade. See the poverty and deprivation that exists in the town. Talbot Road was once the hub of shopping in the town. Now it is full of derelict shops or charity shops.
I wonder if they are wanting to build a tram link there to prevent the great British holidaymakers from soiling their feet in the pavements full of litter and homeless people sleeping in doorways? Do the councillors look outside T K Maxx and see the beggars?
I, like Clare Smith have lived in Blackpool all my life. I went to school here and have resided here constantly. I have seen its demise and over the years have seen shop after shop close. Even the prestigious Hounds Hill Centre has units closing down regularly.
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Hide AdThe town has so many people who live below the poverty level in substandard housing, but they seem to be able to ignore them as long as they can build a tramway. Try building some affordable housing instead.
Please wake up and look around. Try and see further than holidaymakers. That’s all people seem to be interested in. Try and devote some of your nice words to the people who actually live here and make up the community, not just those who come for a weekend.
I feel sorry that Coun Barrowclough has been forced to apologise. I think he got it spot on.
Marion Gourlay
Kipling Court
Blackpool
ANIMALS
There is help there if you have lost a pet
A free support service has been launched by the UK’s largest cat charity, Cat’s Protection, to help grieving owners cope with the loss of their furry friend.
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Hide AdPeople who do not have pets often find it difficult to understand the level of grief that comes from losing a pet, but to animal lovers they are a much-loved member of the family.
Their Paws to Listen service provides a confidential phone line for grieving owners to speak to trained volunteers who can offer emotional and practical help on coping. The phone number to ring is 0800 024 9494 and is open from 9am to 5pm Monday to Friday, excluding bank holidays.
Josephine Harwood
Moor Park Avenue
Bispham
ENERGY
Where are fracking donations going?
The local anti-fracking campaign groups are constantly appealing for donations, as too are some notable individuals.
It seems there is plenty of scope for some of this money to be being used as ‘income’, but because there’s no transparency, it’s impossible to tell. One anti-fracker has openly boasted on social media that monies are being paid to the commune of anti-frackers behind the B&Q store. Perhaps HMRC ought to look into this matter?
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Hide AdAlso, perhaps this is news to many who offer funding to the campaign group?
Name and address supplied
FOOD
This rule is well past its use-by date
It is so refreshing to learn that the waste reduction charity, Wrap, is advocating ditching ‘use-by’ dates for milk.
Like many others, I was brought up to tell whether milk was okay by sniffing or sipping it. Using old-fashioned common sense has served generations well in terms of sussing out if food and drink is safe or not. Food safety is obviously very important, but we now live in a risk-adverse, namby-pamby society where more than 100 million pints of milk and more than four million tonnes of food are needlessly chucked out each year.
Unfortunately some people get confused between ‘use by’ and ‘best before’ dates and education by Wrap can only but help.
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Hide AdMeanwhile, I am delighted that they are in talks with the dairy industry, Food Standards Agency and government officials over whether to scrap the use-by dates to reduce milk wastage.
I hope this comes about and is also applied to other food stuffs that don’t need such labels.
Louise Bours
North West UKIP MEP