Letters: October 11, 2016

Anonymity is granted only at the discretion of the editor, who also reserves the right to edit letters.

Rethink on libraries

SWINDON Borough has done well to give the public an opportunity to voice an opinion on library closures through a well composed consultancy form.

It is not easy to engage the public in such a consultation; hopefully there has been a good response but are the members of the borough council going to take note or are the many library closures a foregone conclusion?

The few libraries the council is intending to keep open are situated in central Swindon or towards the perimeters of West Swindon.

One of the libraries threatened is in Wroughton. If you live in a rural area and take the line of villages from Wroughton, the line being Uffcott, Broad Hinton, Winterbourne Bassett, Berwick Bassett, Winterbourne Monkton and Avebury, we are in the middle of a triangle where the nearest libraries are Marlborough and Royal Wootton Bassett which do not come under the Swindon “umbrella.”

It is a round trip of about 20 miles to these main towns; most villages have lost their post offices. Others have lost pubs, schools, shops; some do not even have a village hall.

We struggle to keep our churches open, not only for worship but as meeting points for human interaction.

Wroughton is an epicentre for a wide area; it has a large population of elderly and retired people, a surgery, a large comprehensive school, a post office, a shopping centre, supermarkets, a private hospital, a hospice, several pubs and a village hall. It is on a good bus route and still has free parking.

Wroughton library is the most accessible library for all our villages. It seems to have been purpose-built and spacious. The librarians are experienced and well informed, organising a variety of activities.

I have seen elderly ladies teaching lace-making to young schoolchildren.

Recently I attended an exhibition of a beautiful sea shell collection which was also very educational.

A comprehensive and efficient library service does not need to make provision for anything else besides books; in this day and age everyone has their own “gadget” on which they can download almost anything.

With the exception of a few, I doubt that books are downloaded. Most young people spend time reading emails.

It is useful for a library to have a photocopier for which they charge; there is no need for computers which need costly servicing.

The council has to think outside the box. Charge for new books, ask for sponsorship from local businesses or individuals. Ask people if they would like to be a Book Angel – i.e. an individual contributes funding for five books and a label is put inside the book acknowledging the donor.

Use the library for other public services. Section off one area as they have done in Great Malvern. There are sections for Age Concern, Citizens Advice, payment of Council Tax and the purchase of a disability card. Put the building to a more diverse use.

On August 4, the Gazette and Herald published the story “£12.2m in council tax goes unpaid to Wiltshire Council.” Does this apply to Swindon Council?

It is a scandal that any council seeks to make cuts in its services when it does not have its own house in order.

I live 12 miles from Swindon town centre; I would not consider taking my grandchildren to the central library because of the driving and the parking.

So by the choice of libraries the borough council may decide to close, they are excluding those of us who pay our rates, but happen to live in more isolated areas.

DEBORAH YOUNG

Winterbourne Bassett

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Road a big car park

I WOULD like to complain about the volume of cars parked on Welton Road from Oxford Brooks University and the Audi garage. Residents in the Westlea area never wanted the university or garage to come to West Swindon. We are finding that they have not provided the correct size car park to cover parking for all students.

Also parking meters installed in the car park are going to put students off parking there.

We want the road to be kept clear of cars parked all day in the area by these students. The residents of Westlea are unhappy with this situation, it has become like a car park between 11am and 3pm each day.

In particular Wednesday last week was a very bad day, cars parked on both sides of the road, mostly on over half of pavements, making it difficult to walk past. I even had to walk in the road in some cases. This is an accident waiting to happen.

Regarding the Audi garage, again this garage is too big for the area, with daily deliveries of cars, they seem to park in very dangerous areas unloading new vehicles. This needs a review urgently for the space they have to work with.

MR A HENDERSON

Benwell Close

Westlea, Swindon

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Birth of terrorism

TERRY Hayward (Friday’s Advertiser) believes that terrorism around the world, (ISIS etc), has increased because of the liberalism of the elite.

Not for him the namby pamby approach of looking at what happened in the real world.

There, everyone who knows anything about the growth of ISIS, from security advisers through to anti-war activists point to the destruction of whole areas by western military intervention as a key factor in the growth of these murderous groups.

All in the pursuit of the control of oil markets and US strategic power. Terry missed all that.

He thinks that the abolition of the death penalty in 1965 is to blame.

And he shamelessly uses the appalling murder of two young women to shore up his case.

David Collins joins in, suggesting “history will prove him right”.

It doesn’t really matter what about because Mr Collins’ view of history will prove anything he wants. Why?

He simply makes the history up.

For example, “We went on our own for hundreds of years without help from Europe...”

What does that even mean?

Certainly the UK did not “go on its own.” It saw waves of inward and outward migration. Migrants were central in building the UK we know, materially and culturally. Internationally the “hundreds of years” Mr Collins talks about includes periods where huge amounts of wealth (loot) came in from the Empire.

It includes the period when the opium trade was the hub of Empire – when Britain forced China to import the drug through the opium wars.

Mr Collins is no more secure with economics. He writes “wealth creates jobs”.

Actually, labour (work) creates wealth, which is then taken and controlled by rich people who didn’t produce it. Even Adam Smith wrote that profit is a deduction from labour.

PETER SMITH

Woodside Avenue, Swindon

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Terrific pub and food

MY WIFE and I have just had our Sunday lunch at the Kingsdown Arms, Stratton, we would just like to say, what a really good experience it was.

Service was of a very high quality and the food also, all for a very reasonable cost.

We have been regulars at the Kingsdown, for many years and never thought that the hospitality or the fare offered previously, could be improved upon.

However, we have been pleasantly surprised, because the new landlord and his staff have somehow managed to do this.

You should send your team out to sample the experience and perhaps feature this in one of your editorials.

JON ELLIS

The Street, Swindon

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Why French not British?

THE work will soon begin on building the replacements to the Trident submarines. The project will cost £41bn.

The shocking news about this project is that they are going to use French steel to build these submarines.

The British steel works in Port Talbot, South Wales, is threatened with closure through lack of orders while the British Government gives this massive project to the French steel industry.

If this contract had been given to a British steel company it would have saved thousands of highly paid skilled jobs here in Britain.

This Conservative Government cannot grasp the strategic importance of supporting British manufacturing industry.

STEVE HALDEN

Beaufort Green, Swindon

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Make quick recovery

I AM sorry to learn Steve Thompson has been diagnosed with prostate cancer.

Certain circumstances remind us we may have our own views and opinions on the way things should be but there are situations which are outside our control.

Mr Thompson says he will need time to recuperate from his illness and will be taking a break from letter writing to the Adver until nearer Christmas.

I shall keep watch for his return. We may even find our common ground.

I wish Mr Thompson all the best with his treatment and a speedy recovery.

K KANE

Wharf Road, Wroughton

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Champagne socialist

THE dreadful, hypocritical, “there is no problem with immigration only whites”, champagne socialist and Corbyn’s ex-lover, Diana Abbott, promoted to Shadow Home Secretary? Dear God, no.

J ADAMS

Bloomsbury, Swindon