Famine and shortage was experienced at regular intervals and was understood by all. This has been the case right up to as recently as the immediate post- Second World War years.

Those who lived through the war will be only too aware of what that struggle could be like when this country faced starvation, defeat and famine as a result of enemy submarine action. Only a miracle and our valiant Navy saved us.

This resulted in an immense effort to be as self-sufficient in foodstuffs as a nation as we could be. Our farming industry produced the goods and for the first time in our long history we could live by our own efforts.

Some large areas of our arable land had been recovered from the sea by investing time and resources into doing so, over many centuries. Good you would think, be happy at our good fortune. Rejoice.

Not a bit of it. Along comeour politicians who say we can't afford the sea defence costs. Yet we can afford two unnecessary wars.

I fear, however that as usual, we will rush headlong down the wrong road, led by the passengers aboard the gravy train called the European Union. Let nobody say they haven't been warned, we can't eat a golf course or a salt marsh.

From: David Foster, Adel, Leeds.

RATHER than just promoting sea defences, shouldn't we be campaigning for land reclamation on the east coast? Think Holland. And if nothing is to be done, erosion will continue – probably at an increasing rate; so, where do we draw the line? Driffield-by-the-Sea?

Would this be allowed to happen to Essex or Kent? Absolutely not.


Harry and 'a gaggle of giggling women'


From: Beryl Williams, School Hill, Newmillerdam, Wakefield.

WE heard recently that Prince Charles was worried about his son serving in Afghanistan. Of course, as any parent would be. But if I
had a son like Harry, I would be just as fraught with anxiety every time he had a night out in London.

And now we see him doing nothing more useful than joining a gaggle of giggling women as they jeer at his poor brother, bedecked in ridiculous and anachronistic ceremonial garb at the expense of all of us (Yorkshire Post, June 17) as William became a Royal Knight of the Garter.

This would be merely rather sad, were it not for the news placed alongside it: that more of our boys are to be sent to Afghanistan, as though the death toll so far were not bad enough.

And George W Bush, presumably, is safely back in Washington after proudly cavorting around London, having contrived to cause the war in
the first place in order to get his hands on even more oil.

I have never felt more ashamed of my country. Our leaders sheepishly follow the criminal policies of the United States.

They totally lack moral backbone and we shall go to the dogs indeed if this course of behaviour is not soon reversed.


City Tory leader defends party's poll showing


From: Coun Andrew Carter, Deputy Leader of the Council, Leader of the Conservative Group, Executive Member for Development and Regeneration, Civic Hall, Leeds.

YOUR columnist, Tom Richmond, commented on the local election results in Leeds in a most disparaging way, demonstrating either complete ignorance or a deliberate
wish to mislead (Yorkshire Post, June 7).

The facts are simply these, that for the first time since the General Election in 1992, 16 years ago, the Conservatives share of the popular vote would have delivered us three parliamentary seats if the results were repeated in a General Election. The seats in question are Pudsey, Elmet and North East Leeds.

Our share of the vote was the best for many years, with the Liberal Democrats pushed into a very poor third place and Labour polling one of its worst results in memory. However, Mr Richmond was right in one respect, we did lose a seat, but this was a seat held by a councillor who had defected to us from the Liberal Democrats. In fact, in 2007, the Liberal Democrats had held it with a majority of over 1,400. When our new colleague defended the seat it reverted to the Liberal Democrats, however, he almost halved their majority and moved the Conservatives into second place in Weetwood for the first time in many years.

We know that there is a great deal more to do for all of us in the Conservative Party throughout the North of England and West Yorkshire in particular, but to pretend we are not making headway is simply untrue.

Finally, Mr Richmond continued to "vent his spleen" on the administration here in the city council, which was elected by the will of the people. Of course, those of us in the Pudsey constituency are coming to know Mr Richmond fairly well. He misses no opportunity to try to denigrate his local councillors in the Guiseley and Rawdon ward or to pour scorn on what the Conservatives are achieving
in Leeds.