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A big thank you to all the bakers!

On behalf of Alzheimer’s Society I would like to say a huge and heartfelt thank you to your readers for uniting against dementia and taking part in Cupcake Day 2019.

In just the time it takes to bake a batch of cupcakes, six people will develop dementia in the UK. Across Swindon more than 2,200 people are living with dementia and 850,000 are affected UK -wide.

Alzheimer’s Society is investing in, and accelerating, dementia research and has committed to spending at least £150m in the next decade. Every Cupcake Day event held helps Alzheimer’s Society find a cure, improve care and offer support, help and understanding for people affected.

Now in its fourth year, Alzheimer’s Society’s Cupcake Day has raised over £3.5 million since 2016, with more than 600 people signing up from the local area this year.

We are so grateful to all the bakers and fakers who have taken part in Cupcake Day this year. We want to thank everyone who participated for playing a vital part in raising awareness of dementia and uniting with Alzheimer’s Society.

We look forward to seeing you next year!

Jenna Bedbook, Alzheimer’s Society, c/o Alzheimer’s Society, Sanford House, Swindon

Keeping me busy...

I would like to know what the council is going to do with all this food waste? It horrified me to think that Mr and Mrs Smith have their three bins under the worktop.

A green bin is for peel, skins, meat, fish and unwanted food. The other two bins are for glass and paper. Sorting all this out is a misery.

Soon the council tax will be going up to fund this weekly collection. Still one good thing – it gives me something to do!

Janet Woodham, Scotby Avenue, Swindon

Careful with free speech

Re Mr Halliday’s letter in the Adver on 6/7/19,

Mr Halliday you speak of free speech. Yes I agree with you but if that means that views of certain sections of people are beaten up or hurt by that free speech then this against the law.

The police and the CPS version of hate crime is the following: If the victim or anyone else think it was motivated by hostility prejudice based on disability/race/religion/sexual identity/or transgender identity.

These views are both painful and could be not helpful to mental health etc.

And this is not personal to me at all.

Helen Thompson, Princes Street, Swindon

No justification

I do love meaningless comparisons of the type used by Coun Oliver Donachie when attempting to justify the increased car parking charges imposed by the council.

Everyone apart for borough councillors accepts that the primary users of the Bristol Street car park are rail commuters and not town centre shoppers.

I wonder if the council analysed the average ‘parking time’ at Bristol Street before deciding the easiest way to earn the most money was to increase the over six-hour rate by a massive 151%. After all, I guess the greater number of users would easily be those who park and take the train to London, Bristol and Cardiff for work, or park and take the train for a trip to the seaside.

As for the meaningless comparison – who is interested in the cost of parking in Bristol and what is the relevance?

Des Morgan, Caraway Drive, Swindon

A divided nation

Interesting reading the letters from Zoe McCormick and Craig Halliday regarding the violence and hatred in our society today.

That our nation is divided,with a lack of respect for each other,with violence, hatred and fear stalking our streets is an undeniable fact. We have turned our backs on the Lordship of Jesus Christ and what we see on our streets and in our society today is the result of that rejection.

No human will ever have the answer to our nations’ problems,and the only hope that this nation has if it is not to spiral down into complete social breakdown and anarchy is a return to the Lordship of Jesus Christ.

So, Zoe and Craig (and anybody else) before you dismiss me as some “religious nut job” please Google what happened in Cali Colombia in 1995 when people got on their knees in prayer in their thousands because they had enough of the violence,corruption,murders and the drugs that were devastating their City.

These revivals were very real and brought real transformation because when God comes down everything changes resulting in totally changed lives and changed communities and changed nations.

Our country desperately needs this transformation to happen here,without it we will plunge into a darkness that we will never emerge from.

Only Jesus can bring this transformation,my prayer is that the people of this nation will realise this before it is too late.

Steve Jack, Parsonage Court, Highworth