Letters: December 8, 2016

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

Success of campaign

IT is great to see that the community campaign to retain Park Library as a core library has been a success.

It is too easy to think that all consultations these days are a sham, but it goes to show that a well organised campaign with a clear set of objectives can succeed.

My thanks are due to all those involved in achieving this result.

In particular I would like to thank key people who played a significant part in helping in the campaign, notably Sarah Church from the Save Swindon Libraries campaign, Martin Wicks secretary of the Parks And Walcot Community Forum who did so much to co-ordinate the local campaign and Kelly Chandler and family who collected more than half the 1,100 local signatures on the petition to save the library.

I would also like to thank the local head teachers and other members of the community who expressed their support for the retention of the library.

It was truly a joint effort and shows that even in these cynical times the community can come together to defend a well-loved and well-used service.

I would also like to thank Coun Mary Martin for listening to the arguments for changing her original proposals and restoring the Park Library as a core library.

I trust that we shall see more examples of thoughtful responses to future consultation exercises from other cabinet members.

But we do need to recognise that the library service, along with so many of our other local services, remains under threat due to a combination of increasing demand for services for adult and child social care and reduced funding from Central Government.

Jobs continue to be lost and services reduced. The shadow of austerity continues to darken our political debate and blight many of our neighbours’ lives.

Until this shadow is lifted we will need many more campaigns to retain the local services which contribute to the better society we all desire.

COUN STEVE ALLSOPP

Walcot and Park North

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Misleading figures

NO doubt we are going to get a deluge of letters from the Barmy Brexit Brigade about the latest immigration figures, which show a record net immigration.

However raw figures are notoriously misleading. More than half the immigrants in the latest figures are not from the EU. These could have been stopped from coming to the UK by the stroke of the Prime Minister’s pen, but she didn’t because they had jobs waiting for them and they were acceptable as immigrants even by the standards of the illiberal elite that run the UKIP.

Of the EU migrants more than half of them had jobs waiting for them in the UK. Again, by the public utterances of the illiberal elite that finance and run the UKIP, these are acceptable.

If one takes from the remainder, EU students who not only are here temporarily but pay to be here, and seasonal agricultural workers who return home at the end of the season, there are relatively few immigrants to whom even the, fast-unravelling, UKIP could object.

STEVE THOMPSON

Norman Road, Swindon

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Full of contradictions

BILL Williams’ Saturday Advertiser letter was uncomfortably compelling in its unsuccessful attempt to make sense of the world around him, but his misconceptions are not his alone.

They originate from the smoke of misinformation from our national news media. He calls for change but the change he calls for amounts to keeping everything the same.

His description of the UK today: “Blatantly self-interested people lining their own pockets at our expense” describes how Britain has been “maintained for centuries.”

Bill claims he wants to change this but then celebrates, “our island has fought for centuries to maintain (it).” Bill’s somersaults are remarkable.

Buried in this marvel of self-contradiction we find reference to “the nonsensical mantra of climate change.”

I wait with baited breath for Bill to inform us of the liberal conspiracy saying the world is round.

PETER SMITH

Woodside Avenue, Swindon

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Volunteers needed

THE NSPCC school service is enormously important as it gives children the tools they need to speak out and stay safe from abuse.

In total, my volunteers and I have reached more than 8,000 children in Swindon. But we want to speak to even more children aged between four and 11, and we need your help.

The Speak Out, Stay Safe programme gives children the language and confidence they need to talk about their worries, and the knowledge they need to keep themselves safe.

Volunteering is a great way to meet new people and learn a new skill, while giving something back.

The NSPCC, and our friendly team of volunteers, give you all the training and support you need to feel confident in your role.

We ask for a minimum commitment of just three morning or afternoon visits a month, so you can give as much or as little time as you like.

For more information visit: www.nspcc.org.uk/what-you-can-do/volunteer-or-work-for-us/volunteer-childline-schools-service/

Or you can email me at kevin.west@nspcc.org.uk or call 07909 688393.

KEVIN WEST

NSPCC School Service

Swindon area co-ordinator

Albert Street, Swindon

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Centenary of the cubs

THIS year is Cubs100, the centenary of the sub scout movement, and I’m lucky and proud to be ambassador for their monumental birthday party. December 16 is the 100th birthday and, like the cubs from Wiltshire, I will be renewing my sub scout promise.

It’s been an incredible year so far, with trips, fun days and camp outs, but the best is yet to come with Cubs100 birthday parties taking place across the country this week.

For 100 years cub scouts have been helping in their communities and this year is no different. Through the A Million Hands project cubs in Wiltshire have been helping to make their community a better place to live and work.

I would also like to shout out to the volunteers in Wiltshire for their dedication each week to giving cubs the chance to experience big adventures and take part in activities that could be life-changing. Volunteers , we salute you!

During this special week, I would just like to say a big happy birthday to cubs past and present as we look forward to another 100 years of endeavour; learning new skills, having fun and making lifelong friends.

STEVE BACKSHALL

Cubs100 Ambassador

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Euro currency flawed

IN reply to Don Reeve (December 6) may I suggest he does not throw away his old economics text books.

He is correct that floating currencies help countries deal with their trade deficits, but the old laws of supply and demand still hold true.

When a country runs a trade deficit it has to borrow enough money to bridge the gap between imports and exports.

This highlights a problem with the Euro currency. The Euro is too high for countries like Greece and Spain, but they are stuck with an overvalued currency and it cannot be devalued.

For Germany the opposite is the case. The Euro is far too low for Germany and so its trade surplus just keeps on getting bigger and bigger.

The German currency should float higher, but it cannot rise because many other countries use the Euro currency.

The creation of the Euro currency has taken away all the benefits that the world enjoyed from floating currencies.

The very idea of a currency to be used by many different countries was flawed from the start.

STEVE HALDEN

Beaufort Green, Swindon

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Thanks for support

SWINDON Guide Dogs For The Blind would like to say a big thank you to everyone who has supported our charity during 2016.

Without your wonderful support and generosity we would struggle to help support guide dog partnerships in Swindon.

ALAN FLETCHER

Swindon Guide Dogs For The Blind

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Drop the pickaxe plan

INTERESTING letter from Chris Gleed (December 5) but I can’t help thinking that arming 100,000 prisoners with pickaxes might be asking for trouble!

RAY REEDER

Grailey Close, Swindon