Readers' letters - July 7

So, Jeremy Corbyn has been invoking the words of Shelley – “Ye are many –they are few!”

By doing this, he is, through hard-left populism of the worst order, creating resentment towards those who achieve success in life.

Don’t forget that Corbyn has never had a proper job in his life. He started out as a representative for trade unions before becoming an MP in 1983. He is unfit to criticise anyone who is a success in life.

Regarding ‘many and few’ quotes, I prefer the words of Churchill, from his famous speech celebrating the bravery of the RAF during the Battle of Britain: “Never in the field of human conflict was so much owed by so many to so few.”

The many owe a lot to the few.

Firstly, ‘the many’ do not pay much tax. The Government is very reliant on richer people for its funding. About 90 per cent of income tax is paid by the 50 per cent of taxpayers with the highest incomes, while more than a quarter is paid by the richest one per cent. If ‘the few’ are demonised, then they won’t bother creating and managing the businesses that create work for ‘the many’.

If Corbyn had his way we’d end up with a workforce comprised only of public sector workers. If we relied on ‘the many’ to take on the tax burden, we’d end up with a Somalia-sized economy.

It is often only the exclusivity of a goal that makes people work hard to achieve it. If everyone can do something, it becomes much less attractive.

People are competitive, ambitious and seek to do better than other people. It is a major driving force in life. We, therefore, often end up with small numbers of people doing extremely well – I’m afraid it’s the way of the world.

However, these successful people contribute a huge amount to society. They inspire people to do things. People are not equal and never will be and can’t be made to be equal. People are individuals with different skills and different abilities.

Tim Hunter

via email

PARKING

Charges will affect most of us

Re: Car parking charges at Preston and Chorley hospitals. Recently, you included a report on car parking charges at these two hospitals but focused solely on the proposal to extend charges to Blue Badge holders (of which I am one).

However, you missed the far more serious aspect of the proposals which is to massively increase the charges for nearly everyone.

At present the charges are £3 for up to six hours and £10 thereafter, although patients and visitors are exempt from this higher charge.

The new proposals which are being introduced at short notice and no public consultation are: 0 –30 minutes free (as now)

Up to one hour £2.50

Up to two hours £3.50

Up to four hours £5.50

Up to six hours £6

Over eight hours £10

The one hour band is useless for most patients as you need to check in at least 15 minutes before your appointment and you need a similar time to return to your car.

Therefore, unless the doctors keep to their appointment times, which would be unique in my experience, most patients will pay the two or four hour charge – and the four hour charge is nearly double the existing charge.

This will especially hit A&E patients where normal waiting times are three to four hours.

A total disgrace in my opinion, and yet the reaction from local MPs (except Mr Hoyle), council leaders and patient representatives has been nil.

Terry Carter

Penwortham

energy

Not too late to stop fracking

Last week a most important public meeting took place at the Lowther Theatre, Lytham St Annes.

The meeting, presented by Mike Hill, a noted oil and gas engineer and leading industry authority, saw the venue packed to capacity with over 450 attendees and many more turned away.

His presentation dealt with the risks of fracking, a process which poses potential health risks just as serious as smoking, and in particular focused on Cuadrilla’s massive exploration site on Preston New Road, near Blackpool, which is due to commence fracking very soon.

It could be the first of hundreds of such sites across Lancashire.

It was notable that the audience comprised many responsible and concerned residents, including a local dairy farmer who was worried about the negative impact that fracking could impose on his livelihood and indeed the risks to all local growers who supply their products to supermarkets on the basis that it is fresh and of the highest quality, for the time being at least.

It was impossible to compare anyone in that audience with the label of “professional protesters and activists” that Cuadrilla and other pro-frackers use to conveniently describe anyone who dares to question their activities.

A couple of years ago Cuadrilla’s CEO Francis Egan stated that the Fylde area would become the biggest gas field in Western Europe.

It is certainly on the way to become just that.

Like the 450 people who attended Mike Hill’s meeting, it really is time that all the residents of Fylde, Wyre, Lancashire and indeed the whole country, woke up to this potential threat to our health, our environment and the very perception of the area in which we live. It’s not too late to do something about it.

J Bailie

via email

tragedy

Disparity of the rich and poor

Talking about disparity in regard to the fire at Grenfell, and the location of the tower block in one of the wealthiest areas of the country.

A visit from the Queen, who has just got a pay rise to spend on a refurbishment at Buckingham Palace, is rubbing salt in the wound.

With this being an unprecedented tragedy, the least she could do is offer temporary shelter in the Palace for the people until permanent homes are found.

Name and address supplied

politics

Magic Money hocus pocus

The constant jibe by Tory ministers during the recent election that Labour’s manifesto policies were funded by a magic money tree, has come back to bite them. In order to stay in power they have paid, (for the present) £1bn in danegeld to the DUP, presumably from a similar source as the derided Labour tree. Now, with most of their previous funding policies abandoned, what other magical source will they turn to?

Denis Lee

Ashton

pay

Apply pay cap to MPs too

If public sector workers had to have a pay cap, it should have also applied to MPs and the top people in the police and other organisations, not just rank and file workers.

Alan Ossitt

Via email