Readers' letters - January 24

'˜We are governed by worst among us'
MP Ben BradleyMP Ben Bradley
MP Ben Bradley

In life, many of us live by the dictum ‘deeds not words’, meaning talk can be cheap and we should primarily judge on actions.

So what of our minority Tory government?

In terms of both deeds, and now words from some of their MPs and prominent media supporters, we are seeing a truly terrifying synergy.

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We have an appalling government addicted to the failed dogma of austerity.

Since 2010, most workers have seen their pay cut as a result of wage freezes, one in five workers earn below the living wage, poverty has sky-rocketed, living standards are flatlining and social mobility has plummeted.

They have created an unprecedented crisis in the NHS and are privatising it.

Every other public

service is also in crisis and subject to massive cuts including a third fewer firefighters and 20,000 fewer police.

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These deeds have made Britain less wealthy, less healthy, less happy, and have immiserated millions.

So what of words?

According to the Conservative Youth co-ordinator, Ben Bradley

MP (pictured), the poor should be sterilised and

our public servants should quit if they don’t think they’re paid enough!

Added to that was the appointment of a man to the universities watchdog who thinks working class students are “stains” and has made obscene comments about starving children.

Unbelievably Theresa May has supported both of them.

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So now we hear the vicious words of those committing the vicious deeds.

We are truly governed by the worst among us.

James Sorah

via email

poverty

Haves and have nots

While shopping at Booths on Saturday, the stark divide between the ‘haves and have nots’ was brought home to me.

A group of Labour supporters were leafleting about the effects of Conservative austerity, while also collecting food for local people, who are sadly increasingly in need of such support.

It was both interesting and depressing to observe Tory councillors, who were sat passively drinking coffee while others are having to literally mop up the disastrous effects of their policies and associated austerity measures.

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Why is this having to happen in a country as rich as the UK? The collection drew attention to the fact that many of the growing numbers of people who need the support of local charities are often working people trying to survive on highly precarious zero hours contracts or those who experience late payments of their benefits, often as a supplement to meagre wages.

Rather than sit drinking coffee on a Saturday morning, the said councillors might be better employed pro-actively addressing the poverty and associated food hunger that is causing such misery and despair to far too many individuals and children in Preston today.

Ms Jane Pilkington

Fulwood

roads

Getting hump over bumps

It comes as no surprise that there has been no enforcement against offenders in 20mph zones or in other related areas of road safety.

There’s been no money to enforce these measures. Similarly, no money for film in speed cameras, that have been empty for years. Why, initially, was the money from the earlier fines not put back into financing new film?

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Councils always claim they are not out to make a profit from such fines. On the topic of speed bumps, the main type of offender relishes the challenge of flying over them, or overtaking, at speed, people complying with the restrictions. A much better use of the tarmac would have been made by filling in the innumerable potholed roads which resemble artillery attacked war zones in some places.

Denis Lee

Ashton

energy

‘No limit?’

Is there no limit to the greed of the fracking industry? Not content with having licences to frack from the Lancashire coast to the Yorkshire coast and from North Yorkshire to the Midlands, it now considers it essential to drill horizontally under the, until now, protected North York Moors.

It is further evidence of their “couldn’t care less” attitude to the environment, our beautiful countryside and its inhabitants.

A N Burlak

via email

city centre

Dirty then ... and now

Re: Dirty bus station (LP Retro January 6).

It would be an eye-opener if you could instruct one of your reporters and a photographer to report on the state of Preston city centre now.

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The following buildings are a disgrace to what was “Proud Preston” – the library, Town Hall, court buildings and the old police station.

These all need cleaning, they are all in a disgusting state.

The people in charge need to wake up.

Mr J Simpson

Preston

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