Make big firms pay for fuel hike
The price of oil, gas etc is severely damaging our economy and indeed the pockets of our citizens. But let's look at the situation closely.
When oil goes up today, the pump price goes up tomorrow but it takes a few months before the oil bought today reaches the pumps, so why the instant price rise?
Of course, when the price of oil comes down it takes that few months for the decrease to be passed on to the motorist.
The price of gas is linked to the price of oil for some reason which I can't fathom. Cut the link and gas prices ought to come down again.
This situation owes more to greedy fuel suppliers boosting their profits than it does to reality. Speculators are making fortunes from all this too.
They do nothing whatsoever for the economy but make their fortunes from ruining it.
The very least the speculators and fuel companies should face is seizure of their excessive profits by way of windfall taxes.

Jeff McCann, Hoghton, via email

Speed cameras are not improving roads
Swindon Council is right to believe that vehicle activated signs are more cost effective than speed cameras.
The Department for Transport already knew, or should have known, that signs costing less than £1,000 per annum are rather better at reducing accidents and casualties than are speed cameras costing £50,000 per annum.
Their refusal to admit that they have been pursuing a camera policy which has clearly been ineffective when the same expenditure of public money on signs would have provided at least 50 times greater safety benefit, is a breach of public servants' duty of care to the public.
Incidentally, the defensive reaction of Wiltshire Camera Partnership to Swindon's withdrawal of funding - that their cameras have resulted in a two thirds drop in fatal and serious accidents
at their sites - is self-serving
nonsense.
Even the DfT admits that no more than 8% of such accidents involve speeds above limits.

Idris Francis, via email

Council should listen to bus station pleas
After reading the opinions of the people of Preston regarding the bus station, one thing has struck me. For every two letters advocating a new station there are at last seven against the destruction of a unique and famous landmark.
They say clean it up, use it for what it is and stop wasting taxpayers' money, and I agree.
For more than 40 years the bus station has served Preston well - not just the bus users but countless thousands of commuters, shoppers and theatre-goers who have parked there day and night.
I challenge the council to hold a vote to gauge exactly how many people want to keep the present bus station, before it's too late.
I can guarantee it is a lot more than the 62% in favour of keeping it, as shown in a recent LEP survey.
The new station will be smaller and further away from the city centre and railway station.
But Preston actually needs a large bus station because of its central position where several major roads all link up here.
That's why it was built so big in the first place! If it goes, Preston will be ridiculed. Preston could be greatly improved on a much cheaper scale without all this extortionate cost.
We need to envisage a vibrant answer to the rut we are in and look at the examples set by other cities which have got the balance right.
Not just shops, large blocks of over-priced apartments and more drinking establishments.

Name and address supplied

Criminal mistake
I write with regard to your recent court report headlined "Worker headbutted in hospital row".
In it you quoted the fact that the defendant had a previous conviction in 1999 when, as a hospital porter, he attacked another
colleague.
What sort of hospital management would re-employ this type of person within the NHS?
In this day of Criminal Record Bureau checks, how could this happen?

Name and address supplied

Thank you for BHF fundraising efforts
I am writing to thank all your readers who helped to make the British Heart Foundation (BHF) Help a Heart campaign a success last month.
So many people supported the campaign by digging deep and donating to our UK-wide House to House collections, buying a Heart Button from their local BHF Shop or raising funds in their own way, that we're well on our way to raising our target of £1.5m.
We are also extremely thankful to those people who gave their time for free by volunteering to distribute and gather in collection envelopes or helping out with events.
Jackie Skeel, head of fundraising campaigns at the BHF, via email
Pheasants treated well before shoot
I wish people like animal rights campaigner Fiona Pereira would get their facts right.
Pheasants are not treated anything like she alleges.
I am regularly involved in a local shoot and the rearing of pheasants.
These birds are not in cages, they are in pens which are the size of a wood, and there are not thousands in each one.
They are fed and watered
every day and cared for
properly.
May I also remind her that if we didn't do this, some of the wonderful birds we see would no longer exist here as they are not native to Britain.
As for Ms Pereira's statistics... where did she get the fact that 40% of pheasants are only wounded and not retrieved?
An arcade game?
Yes, birds are shot during the game season, and all are eaten or sold to restaurants for
eating.
I do not know of any shooter who would not go out of their way to pick up.

Lisa Brooks, via email

Nothing to see here
With regard to Preston North End's new stand, I feel sorry for the residents who live opposite Lowthorpe Road.
Perhaps, if any of these houses go up for sale, then maybe the board of directors will move into them.
I doubt it though because they wouldn't like to entertain their friends with this blot on the landscape in front of their lounges.
Mick Fiddler, via email
Along for the ride
With reference to your Looking Back photograph of Monday July 1, the Leyland pram race you featured was probably in 1970 or 71.
I was actually in one of the prams, competing with three other lads for The Crofters Arms in Leyland. It was great fun.
Another person in the picture is Bob Parker. Oddly enough he is now licensee of the Crofters.

Jim Whalley, Leyland

eeTo see your letters, texts and emails published here and in the paper:

• WRITE TO: Reader's Letters, Lancashire Evening Post, Oliver's Place, Fulwood, PR2 9ZA


• EMAIL: lepforum@lep.co.uk


• TEXT: LEPSHOUT (space) and your comments (up to 160 characters max.) to 84070


• FAX: 01772 880173

All letters must include the author's name and address, although use of part of the address and noms de plume will be allowed. Include a daytime telephone number if possible.
TEXTS costs 25p plus normal network rates. If you do not want to receive information on any other products or services, text the word EXIT at the end of your message.