Readers' letters - May 12

The only real way to tackle the rising level of youths stabbing each other is to have patrolling police officers, on foot, talking to the public and befriending the youths.

As a country and city bobby of years ago, we mixed with the public and listened to their worries.

That way we often nipped crime in the bud.

If police are not out on the streets, they are not connecting with the public so they have no idea of potential trouble spots and therefore cannot be prepared.

We forecasted, as we watched various cutbacks, that the service would become the same as the Fire Service, only turning out when needed.

It has got worse than that as they now do not, on occasions, turn out to crime reports.

How very sad is that?

Today’s police are remote creatures who leave their stations and vehicles only when the bother has started.

It is rare to see an actual foot patrol officer so, if they are not able to connect with the public, how can they know when and where there is a problem?

Peter Hyde

Address supplied

Donations help people in Haiti

May 13 to 19 is Christian Aid Week.

For more than 70 years, Christian Aid has organised a nationwide collection which has raised many millions of pounds to assist the world’s poor and underprivileged.

Last year, the total raised was £13m, of which the Preston and District Christian Aid Committee contributed £32,529.45, one of the highest local collections in the North West.

On behalf of that committee, I would like to thank all who contributed and to ask all your readers to consider giving this year.

This year, the money will go to a project in Haiti where Christian Aid is working with a local group constructing hurricane and earthquake-proof houses, a vital necessity on an island which is regularly in the path of hurricanes and is also earthquake prone.

We hope for another good response this year and that the people of Preston and South Ribble will as generous as usual.

John Maiden

Chairman of Preston and District Christian aid Committee

Build prisons in Africa

Many years ago we sent prisoners to Australia to help with the over-crowding problem.

We should be considering another such move by building prisons in Africa which would give much needed employment to the people in Africa.

We could afford to do

this from our foreign aid budget.

I am sure that this would also prove to be a deterrent to prisoners reoffending.

Barry

Walton-le-Dale

Gimmick’s not

a solution

Re: £10,000 payment for 25-year-olds. Rather than giving a free handout of £10,000 to young people (a gimmick, not a long-term solution), why not lower private rents, increase the amount of affordable social housing and number of job opportunities, and abolish zero-hour contracts?

Molly Clare

via email