County town is fast losing its influence on decision-making

HAS a local Member of Parliament – even of William Hague’s stature – any influence? Has an elected town or district councillor likewise no influence? If there is no such influence on decisions affecting the public represented, why do we have them?

Decisions are being made which lack wisdom, which do not take into account all sections of a community, which lack enough foresight.

Northallerton can be taken as an example and the community there needs to be warned. Generations accepted Northallerton as the county town of North Yorkshire.

The county council’s large County Hall has been a dominating force, the council governing from this focal point one of the largest areas in the country.

Northallerton required its important courthouses, its police headquarters and is the natural centre for the expansive farming interests, including its important livestock mart. It has the railway line, with a junction for Teesside. It is also on the crossroads for north east, south and east road traffic, and has adequate land for industrial development.

From reports in the Yorkshire Post however, there is a new trend: to ignore the town as the obvious centre for the majority of interests.

A deteriorating NHS is trying to decimate the Friarage Hospital, the police headquarters is to be moved elsewhere from nearby Newby Wiske, the prison is to be closed. Despite efficiency and achievements, the offices of Natural England and the Rural Payments Agency are to go elsewhere.

The jobs lost from Northallerton mean less trade for the weekly market and the shops, less requirement for accountants, solicitors etc, falls in value of land and properties. Such a depressing trend needs to be turned aside by undeniable influence. But have we failed to appoint councillors with that influence, with the necessary ability and with experience of successful communication and organisation? Have we council staff with supporting ability and are we providing excessive pay and pensions? If we had these assets, would they not realise that the first requirement would be to bring together all the county council affairs? There is enough land and building potential at the Northallerton County Hall site where all the offshoot council offices elsewhere both in Northallerton and as far away as Scarborough could be together, reducing costs in the long term and at once ceasing the daily traffic between the many offices.

Generally there seems to be another need – to cut out, from all councils, party politics (the parties nominate party faithfuls, few of whom have the ability or experience required). The decisions which imperil the future of Northallerton, if they are to be resisted, may need influence capable of exacting results from Government level.

As however Mr Hague has been sidetracked on foreign affairs, his time on constituency affairs must suffer, so we are less likely to have strong enough influence at the top level.

Is there a case for constituencies where their MP has been diverted as Ministers for deputy MPs to be appointed?

From: David Smith, Inkerman Way, Denby Dale, Huddersfield.

WITH reference to the article “Out in the real world” (Yorkshire Post, September 14), should MPs wish to value jobs in the “real world” perhaps they should also experience “real world” remuneration.

I think most people in the “real world” would like to receive £34,000 for six days work a year.

They claim they become MPs because of their commitment to public service – I don’t think so!

From: Robert Bottamley, Thorn Road, Hedon, East Yorkshire.

EXTORTIONATE and unwarranted severance payments made to senior managers at the BBC carry a significance that reaches far beyond the boundaries of the British Broadcasting Corporation, or of public institutions.

Vested interests in the public and private sectors alike seek constantly to justify a whole array of “golden welcomes”, huge salaries, excessive bonuses and “golden goodbyes” on the same shifting grounds.

First, they tell us that such payments are necessary in order to attract the best candidates.

Then, they insist that these payments are necessary to retain the candidates.

And finally, they tell us that it is necessary to make further payments in order to get rid of them.

I said “finally”. Not quite. For, whilst ordinary employees struggle to pay their gas, water and electricity bills from wages that continually decrease in value in real terms, members of the favoured “band of brothers” we call ‘senior management’ simply walk into other, similar posts – and the whole game begins again. It is, I submit, time for the rules of this particular game to be re-written.

From: David W Wright, Uppleby, Easingwold, North Yorkshire.

THE BBC is a prime example of the waste of public money and the creation of jobs for the boys/girls plus the resultant ridiculous “redundancy/severance payments”. But the whole situation is not helped by the army of lawyers/compensation chasers plus our now discredited membership of the European Court of Human Rights and the European Court of Justice. We are the first to criticise other countries for abuses of power and nepotism, and even sending them financial aid, but we appear unable to put our own country in order.