Letters: July 27, 2016

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

Trident such a waste

IT WAS disappointing to see 472 MPs, including my own constituency MP Robert Buckland, vote in favour of spending billions (total cost £205bn) to build a new generation of nuclear weapons.

We are constantly being told by politicians, scientists and security experts that the UK’s security threat comes from terrorism, global warming and cyber crime, so why have our politicians voted to spend so much on these appalling weapons of death and destruction?

Every August, politicians (including our own) gather at cenotaphs and memorials around the world to remember those killed in the bombing of Hiroshima in 1945, and each year as the commemorations take place our own politicians make the same statement, which is “we must make sure this kind of death and destruction doesn’t happen again”.

I find that statement slightly hypocritical, as many of those politicians are the same ones that have just voted to have weapons built which are 10 times more powerful than the ones dropped on Hiroshima which killed thousands, left thousands injured and destroyed the whole city.

It’s immoral to spend such vast amounts of money on such dreadful weapons when public services are being decimated due to lack of adequate funding.

MARTIN WEBB

Swindon Road

Old Town, Swindon

....

Action on our borders

NET immigration is 330,000 a year. Our new Prime Minister Theresa May is expecting the negotiations to leave the EU to take about two years.

If all the current trends continue it means that the population of Britain will increase by the amount of 660,000 by the time we get around to taking control of our borders.

There is already a housing shortage with 1.4 million people waiting for a council house. House prices have risen far out of the reach of the working class especially in London.

Swindon is having to close many of its libraries because it can no longer afford to run them and many of the public services such as the NHS are struggling to cope.

When Brexiteers voted on June 23 to leave the EU they expected the British government to take quick action to deal with the problem of the free movement of people across EU borders. They did not expect to have to wait two years before any action is taken.

STEVE HALDEN

Beaufort Green, Swindon

....

We are better out of EU

NOW we have voted to take responsibility for our country’s future, what do we need to do?

Develop a strategy to rebuild industry, with a balanced, robust and cheap energy policy. Build nuclear power stations ourselves. Make firms, government departments and local authorities buy British. Use British steel. Develop a knowledge and innovation strategy, invest more in research and development and in university research.

Design an immigration policy to meet our needs, and plan the public services needed to house, school and provide healthcare for all who live and work here.

Support our farmers. Rebuild our fishing industry; our fishermen should fish in all our waters.

Promote growth and full employment, which would reduce inequality. Rebuild our trade unions, from the workplace, to fight for pay and conditions.

Inside the EU we were trapped inside its treaty-driven austerity, its treaty-determined privatisations and its pro-corporation trade treaties. Outside, we can do better.

WILL PODMORE

Clavering Road,

Wanstead, London

....

Compelled to reply

THERE were three letters in my SA 22/07/16 that I felt the need to reply to: one from Terry Hayward saying that having to show your passport at all borders would prevent terrorism.

Do you remember in the old days the immigration officer would look at one’s passport and ask what the purpose of your visit was. Can you imagine anyone replying “terrorism”? These people are in possession of legal passports.

T Reynolds meanwhile writes of the iniquities of the council and I agree with most of what he writes. He is wrong to state that there will be polls next May, there will be no council elections next May, he will have to vote the following May. There will be no vote next May for the new parish councils for they will be set up as dictatorships without electing parish councillors.

Whether or not we want parishing, if we are having parishes thrust upon us we must be able to vote for the parish councillors, there should be no taxation without representation.

Bill Williams meanwhile complains that he was going to return the last government’s leaflet about the EU referendum to Cameron at 10 Downing Street, with satirical remarks, and has been prevented from doing so by Cameron resigning. Fear not Bill, you can send it to David Cameron MP, Houses of Parliament, SW1A 0AA.

STEVE THOMPSON

Norman Road, Swindon

....

Terror threat to us all

I HAVE a very serious and grave concern regarding my adopted town of 45 years residence, namely Swindon.

The Daily Express has printed a threat from a good source, regarding these maniacs that have caused carnage all over Europe. Their next targets, due to massive protection in areas of a large population, will be rural areas – armed response at least 30 miles away. You can murder a lot of people with a machine gun in two minutes, never mind 30.

I pray to God it never happens in any of our rural towns or cities, but I imagine some French citizen the same age as me did the same, to no avail.

Theresa May is on probation in my opinion.

Would she release a nuclear submarine missile if necessary? Yes, she replied. Good on you, girl – it’s them or us.

Or am I missing something regarding the protection of the law – abiding citizens of our island, of all colours and creeds, women and children and senior citizens, the most vulnerable in our society.

As well as the British male’s instinctive natural protection of his own kith and kin.

BILL WILLIAMS

71 Merlin Way,

Covingham, Swindon