The article by Adam Kula regarding the proposed wind turbines at the Honda plant shows up the ignorance and pathetic statements made by Councillor Rod Bluh and Andy Newman.

Honda have spent something in the region of £1.4bn on establishing the plant at South Marston, so does Coun Bluh really imagine they will throw away this sort of investment?

The cost of shutting the plant down and relocating, including the redundancy payments that would be due to the workers, would be far in excess of their original investment.

As for the statement by Andy Newman, he is completely missing the point of the residents’ concerns.

Yes, the height of the turbines would be a blight on the nearby houses, some within 300 metres of the turbines, but the main issue is on health reasons.

Whatever the so-called experts try to say, turbines do emit a noise level that is intolerable to local residents – as Spalding Council have found out to their cost where they have had to reduce the council tax on local properties. Here the decibel level was found to be 65. Does Swindon Council want to risk that happening in their town?

The residents who will be affected are not against green energy. Far from it.

The question is, why are Honda not considering the alternative of solar panels? They have plenty of land that could accommodate a similar solar farm to Watchfield.

There is to be a new hearing in September so I would hope the planning committee councillors will take all the facts into consideration with their decision.

People’s health and comfort come before profits, so please let’s see a sensible solution to this problem.

David Sweet Purton Swindon

Dismal leadership

Your photograph of failed ex-Prime Minister Gordon Brown was a reminder of how little we have seen of him since his well-merited ejection from Downing Street last year.

Although his Chancellorship in fact proved disastrous overall, it should be recorded in his favour that he did stick to Conservative spending limits in his prudent first two years before the profligate socialist binge in pursuit of votes, from which we are still trying to recover.

More importantly, he designed the vital five tests that prevented Tony Blair trying to bounce Britain into accepting the Euro, and above all, by ousting Blair in 2007 after 10 years of effort, he ensured that Labour would lose the ensuing election under his dismal leadership.

His behaviour since the election has, however, been contemptible. Firstly, after hunkering down in his No 10 bunker for five days, he resigned before the Coalition had been agreed, potentially embarrassing both David Cameron and the Queen. He did this to ensure a final photo-opportunity in daylight outside No 10, instead of leaving later by the rear entrance, as is traditionalfor defeated Prime Ministers.

He then compounded this error by resigning as Labour leader with immediate effect, leaving his deputy Harriet Harman, whom he had never deigned to appoint as Deputy Prime Minister, to act as Leader of the Opposition for four months until Labour had chosen a new leader. Three previous defeated Tory leaders, and three Labour leaders before them, had by contrast all done their constitutional duty.

Since then Mr Brown has hardly been seen at Westminster, although remaining an MP, thus failing properly to represent his constituents. His outburst against the Murdoch empire in a rare appearance conveniently overlooked the fact that when in power he endeavoured to cultivate News International just as much as the bankers.

The honourable course would clearly be for Mr Brown to resign from Parliament so that a by-election could return a more energetic member to speak for Kirkcaldy and Cowdenbeath. I’m not holding my breath!

Charles Linfield Bakers Road Wroughton

Golden Brown

Once again readers have to endure more left wing propaganda from M J Warner (Adver, July 26) regarding his adoration of the new messiah in the shape of Gordon Brown.

It is his democratic right, and long may this continue, to express his views, but he has played the same old record so many times that we are becoming a little bored.

It is time for Mr Warner to give it a rest.

In his latest epistle he tries to hoodwink readers into believing that Gordon Brown was a great chancellor, but history will prove that this is far from true.

Mr Warner goes into great detail regarding the Brown sell off of our gold reserves and how the money was spent on buying euros. This indeed speaks for itself, as the same euro has been a disaster to many countries that adopted it and could very soon be ditched altogether.

I have done some research on the sale of the gold reserves by Gordon Brown and readers may be interested to know that the price of gold has now reached $1,662 (£995) an ounce. Brown sold 395 tons or 60 per cent of the nation’s reserves for about $256 an ounce. In other words, a loss of £10.3 million to the Treasury. The Brown spending on the euro has been called “the worst economic judgment ever made by a Chancellor”.

Of course we cannot expect Mr Warner to accept this fact. As long ago as August 2009 he wrote to say that the Nimrod crash in which all of the crew were killed was an unfortunate accident of war. This was strongly proved not to be the case and the blame was put firmly on the shoulders of the Treasury and the Ministry of Defence in the then Labour government. It is never too late to say sorry Mr Warner.

R W Selway Burden Close Swindon

Delight as hall saved

We were delighted to read that the ‘last ditch meeting’ may have been enough to save the community identity of Gorse Hill. We too have fought for Rodbourne Cheney not to be obliterated. Under the current Local Boundary Commission proposals, the larger part of our community would be absorbed into Haydon Wick Ward.

Gorse Hill & Pinehurst was not the only ward in Swindon to have its community divided by the current proposals, but unlike Gorse Hill & Pinehurst, Rodbourne Cheney does not appear to have been represented by any of its elected ward councillors on the ‘guided’ tour of the area. We understand that, instead, we were represented by a councillor from an adjoining ward!

If the Boundary Commission’s proposals are adopted, very little of Rodbourne Cheney will be included in the new Rodbourne Cheney Ward.

We would like to see all divided communities given the same support and representation by their elected members.

T M Hunt Chairman, Rodbourne Cheney Residents Association

Tail’s a-wagging

Swindon Guide Dogs would like to say a great big thank you to the head, staff and especially the students at Eldene Primary School, Eldene, Swindon for their hard work in raising funds for our charity.

They have raised an astounding £1,500 since September 2010 in doing all sorts of different events throughout the year.

They have also collaborated with The Rotary Club of Swindon Thamesdown to raise £5,000 to ‘Name A Puppy’, which is a scheme run by The Guide Dogs for the Blind Association. Amy Scott, one of their students who chose the name Ella, won a competition run by the school and the rotary club to name the puppy.

Ella visited the school to meet the students and staff in June along with her puppy walker Mary Hayward, who lives in West Swindon.

Guide Dogs would not exist without the help of organisations and schools such as Eldene Primary and The Rotary Club of Swindon Thamesdown raising much needed funds for our charity. Thank you all once again.

Alan Fletcher Chair Swindon Guide Dogs

Work of arch

Can I suggest a couple of alternative ideas for Swindon’s next piece of public art.

How about a ‘Gateway to the Sun’, a triumphal arch spanning the M4 at Junction 15. It could have a model railway running backwards and forwards across it puffing smoke.

Or how about the ‘Gnome of the West’, a monumental gnome to rival some of the other gigantic art statements currently sprouting up around the country. Perhaps there could be some Section 106 money for such a scheme?

David Bent Marlborough Lane Swindon