Friday's Letters: Professor under fire for supporting rioting students

It is no surprise that a UCU-commissioned report showed how positive it is for taxpayers to fund higher education. I wonder what a CBI-commissioned report would show, when graduates are leaving universities unable to put together a decent report?

Virtually all of the population opposing the Government cuts have one thing in common – they have no idea what an alternative strategy might be.

Mr Povey fits into that description perfectly. Two things are very obvious – the country was close to bankruptcy, after Gordon Brown's overspending, and there are too many people on this island for the jobs available, a problem exacerbated by Tony Blair opening the floodgates of immigration.

The coalition Government is tackling both of these issues, by cutting back spending and controlling immigration.

As for Professor Povey's final comments, our society is already investing heavily in education, even if this is not enough for Professor Povey's satisfaction.

We cannot keep on borrowing year after year to finance every vestige of further education. Our creditors would not allow it. Everyone in this country is affected by the cuts and it is right that those who live off the tax-payer should suffer as well.

When will the public sector wake up to the fact that their income, and expenditure, is paid for by private industry's taxes? This even applies to the trip to London last week and the hire of 14 coaches.

Those rioting students were a disgrace – I wouldn't pay a penny more to educate them.

From: Geoff Sweeting, Station Road, Wressle, Selby.

From: David W Wright, Uppleby, Easingwold.

THE letters pages (Yorkshire Post, November 16 and 17) condemning the recent student protest and disgraceful demonstration and damage must mirror the disgust felt by the majority of our long-suffering citizens who watched, with horror, the anarchist activities.

Yet Malcolm Povey, in his defence of the NUS/UCU action, has effectively dug his and the revolting students' graves.

This is another example of the decline and dumbing down of the UK so ably described by Bernard Ingham in his forthright column (Yorkshire Post, November 17).

It is compounded by the news of the EU's decision to build a new HQ, for 859m, while Greece flounders with Ireland to follow and Spain and Portugal next in line for a bail-out by the rest of the EU.

Hopefully, this spells the end of the European dream and the UK can regain its independence and freedom from the EU juggernaut.

As Bernard Ingham stated "We are a corrupted and weakened destabilised nation...but hoping that Cameron has got the message" – but that is questionable in view of the dissent within the coalition Government.

From: Ian Smith, Colston Close, Bradford.

PROFESSOR Malcolm Povey appears to be proud of the disruption and the frightening behaviour of the students occupying the Millbank building last week.

His disgraceful attitude and his indifference to most UK folk hardly warrants comment, other than to suggest that he and his colleagues should reduce university costs by lessening, or at least moderating their excessive salaries – the single item of expenditure that generates the high fees being charged to users and taxpayers.

EU not to blame for court ruling

From: Alan Thorn, Weetwood Avenue, Leeds.

YOUR regular correspondents, Terry Palmer and David Quarrie, rarely miss an opportunity to attack the EU, and do not allow facts to stand in their way.

Their latest missives (Yorkshire Post, November 6) blame the EU for a ruling of the European Court of Human Rights, that prisoners should have the right to vote. Indeed, Mr Quarrie even refers to the court as "the European Court of the EU".

With respect to both these gentlemen, the European Court of Human Rights has nothing whatsoever to do with the EU, save the use of the word "European" in its title.

It was established by the Council of Europe, a very different body to the EU. The Council was founded in 1949 and has 47 member states (including Russia), not just the 27 who are members of the EU.

The execution of court judgments is supervised by the Committee of Ministers of the Council, but states cannot be forced to comply, and the ultimate sanction is expulsion from the Council. The Court is a last resort for individuals who believe that their government has violated their human rights.

The British government has been arguing against the ruling since 2004, but is now preparing to give way.

I agree with the sentiment of the letters, that prisoners should not have the right to vote while serving their sentence, but please, let's place the blame where it belongs, not where our prejudices would like it to belong.

An insult to Churchill

From: Brian Sheridan, Redmires Road, Sheffield.

MAUREEN Hunt's admiration for the "courage and resolve" of Margaret Thatcher sits uneasily with her genuine compassion for the young people who have given their lives for their country (Yorkshire Post, November 17).

What sort of courage was needed to put down an ill-timed insurrection of miners led by a charismatic but inept, deluded leader? The Thatcher-Scargill confrontation would not have been possible but for the fact that, two years earlier, an inept Argentinian leader had felt the need to create a distraction from political trouble at home, as did Thatcher.

The "Iron Lady" couldn't believe her luck when General Galtieri attempted to reclaim the Falkland Islands with an army largely comprising youthful recruits, many of whom perished along with our own lads. Then there was the Belgrano affair.

Margaret Thatcher was smart, ruthless and lucky. The lobby to afford her a state funeral – not, to my knowledge, supported by Mrs Hunt, I hasten to add – is an insult to Sir Winston Churchill.

Lest we forget, Churchill served in the First World War, and to compare the subsequent challenges he faced later in his career with those of Margaret Thatcher, even by implication, is obscene.

A stand for democracy

From: Quentin Deakin, Bradford and District Green Party, Newark Road, Crossflatts, Bingley.

CAN someone please explain how it's more democratic for a country with a larger population to have fewer MPs?

Like a teacher with a class of 30 who is given another 10 pupils to teach, it can only make our MPs more remote from those they represent.

The Conservative-dominated coalition Government is playing pure party politics by removing 50 MPs at a stroke. Let's have equal constituencies by all means, but with electorates of 50,000 rather than 70,000.

The last meddling with our democracy came from Shipley's Labour MP and then junior Minister Chris Leslie, who wanted to extend postal voting even further than its current excessive level, so threatening the secrecy of the ballot.

On that occasion, Chris Greaves, a Conservative Bradford councillor, joined with me in a "Campaign for the Secret Ballot".

This time, I hope that Yorkshire's MPs follow Coun Greaves' lead in opposing this gerrymandering. In so doing, they will be standing up for British democracy.

Pray silence for the brave

From: Katharine G Moorhouse, Emley, Huddersfield.

RECENTLY, a gentleman in Leeds was on TV requesting that cars should be stopped near the Cenotaph when a Remembrance service was in progress.

His wish was to be granted.

Last Thursday morning, I was in Wakefield, on the 11th day of the 11th month at 11am. I left the Ridings Shopping Centre in pouring rain and found a large number of people standing still, then the Last Post was played, two minutes silence kept. I was thrilled. A few people continued to dash through the crowd.

Why can't all people spare a few minutes? Large shopping malls have excellent speaker systems used for announcements; they could play the Last Post, observe the silence, then all shoppers would have the opportunity of taking part. Perhaps next year.

Expensive failure of Bradford's 'regeneration'

From: Douglas Hartley, Irving Terrace, Clayton, Bradford.

YOU reported a disagreement in Bradford City Hall (Yorkshire Post, October 20) about the huge bus "shelter" at Hall Ings.

It is not a shelter in any sense, having a roof, but no walls, as your photographs showed. On a wet, windy day recently, the paving and every seat was running with rainwater.

Labour councillors claim that the structure is part of the 24.4m City Park project. This project had its origins in a "regeneration plan", set in motion by Conservative councillors.

Bradford was once a prosperous, well-run city. The Conservative administration of 10 years ago appeared to have no idea how to restore the city of Bradford's fortunes.

The task was handed over to an unelected body, Bradford Centre Regeneration. Its chief executive was Maud Marshall, not a Bradfordian. An architect, Will Alsop, was brought in as consultant, no doubt at a considerable fee. He produced "masterplans," all costly, some impracticable, some absurd. City Hall was to be surrounded by a huge lake; Hall Ings, part of the A6181, to be closed; the Bradford-Shipley canal branch to be re-opened; along Thornton Road, a "wet-lands" area created, where people would walk on duck-boards, within sight of City Hall.

These "masterplans" were commended to the electorate in an illustrated council publication. I have a copy here, as I write. The then Leader of the Council, Margaret Eaton, now baroness, praised the plans highly.

"Regeneration" was to take place near Forster Square, with a canal basin surrounded by tall apartment blocks. Forster Square was to see extensive retail development. None of this came about. Bradford Centre Regeneration was disbanded – a failure; its chief executive heard of no more.

Strictly not fair on good dancers

From: Janet Berry, Hambleton, Selby.

AS an avid Strictly Come Dancing fan, I cannot understand why people are voting for the ungainly, clumsy Ann Widdecombe.

I do not find her remotely amusing, rather embarassing, and feel it is so unfair that far superior dancers are being voted out in favour of her.

Voters' chance

From: Tim Mickleburgh, Littlefield Lane, Grimsby.

THE betrayal of their pledge to students is yet more evidence that the Lib Dems have got very little out of this coalition, which is carrying out Right-wing policies Cameron and Osborne must have only dreamed of when the Tories failed to get an overall majority on election night.

Still, the public will get their revenge, with local elections in May 2011 being the first widespread opportunity to let voters show what they think of Clegg's U-turn.

Euro loser

From: Godfrey Bloom, UKIP MEP for Yorkshire and North Lincolnshire.

LET'S be honest. If the euro was a horse, we would have shot it by now.

Inn crowd

From: R Miller, Malt Kiln Croft, Sandal, Wakefield.

I SUPPOSE the motto of Chris Bond's pub philosophers (Yorkshire Post, November 16) is "I drink, therefore I am".

Marriage lines

From: Dr Hilary Andrews, Nursery Lane, Leeds.

A ROYAL engagement and marriage.

How wonderful.

Let's just hope that all the memorabilia isn't made in China.