March 9 letters: Your latest letters on the 2015 election

AFTER the General Election in May, and if the Tories win, I think there will be some gains and some losses. I have listed my top five in each category starting with the losses.

1. Fewer police. 2. All libraries closed down. 3. All coal-fired power stations closed by 2020. 4. Fewer ambulances. 5. Sneaky privatisation of the NHS continues.

Now for the good news...

1. More immigrants (millions). 2. More towns and housing estates to be built (why?) 3. More wind farms. 4. More countries joining the EU. 5. More secularisation of our country.

Can any of our readers add to the list?

From: Chris Foote-Wood, Parliamentary Lib Dem candidate for Richmond, Brook Terrace, Darlington.

I AGREE with your correspondent MD Stern that voting should be compulsory, with a “none of the above” option (The Yorkshire Post, March 4), but it seems unfair for all candidates to lose their deposits if “none” gets most votes.

But Mr Stern’s proposal that there should be perpetual by-elections until “none” is defeated is mistaken.

Quite apart from the huge cost to the parties and to the public, the parties would simply bring forward new candidates and the whole process would be repeated indefinitely with ever-diminishing numbers of voters taking part.

Groundhog Day, indeed!

From: Terry Duncan, Greame Road, Bridlington.

THERE is a simple reason for the PM being reluctant to appear in a one to one TV debate (Alastair Campbell, The Yorkshire Post, March 6). That is, he is incapable of speaking off the cuff, but instead relies on copious notelets from his spin doctors. It is obvious, when he is caught on the hop at PMQs he starts stuttering and then repeats jargon.

Mr Cameron is a puppet of the Tory machine.

From: Rick Sumner, Cliff Road, Hornsea.

MAY I express my amazement at the contents of your opinion page (The Yorkshire Post, March 4)? Politically I suppose I am somewhat to the left of most of your columnists, but I found – to my surprise – that I was in agreement with most.

GP Taylor was excellent on Russia. I next read Bernard Ingham’s piece on cold calling and customer service. To my amazement, I also agreed with him. I am not over familiar with the views of Grant Woodward but I enjoyed his article on hypocrisy. Thank you for some excellent reading.

From: Terry Palmer. South Lea Avenue, Hoyland, Barnsley.

HERE is an interesting fact about Sheffield Hallam MP Nick Clegg, who is now trying to fool everybody by saying he is distancing himself from the Tory party.

The Lib Dem leader has voted with the ‘nasty’ party 259 times, that’s 99.6 per cent of his votes cast since 2010. Just a reminder to the Hallam electorate he has created by being in cahoots with the Tories.

From: Heather Causnett, Escrick Park Gardens, Escrick, York.

I TRULY believe our National Health Service is the envy of the civilised world.

However, I think that Britain is far, far too lenient with people who can’t be bothered to look after themselves.

When problems are self-inflicted, like drink or obesity, they should go to the end of the queue when it comes to care, or certainly have to pay a reasonable sum towards their treatment.

There are so very many deserving cases for our hospitals to deal with that they should not have to waste their time and effort on unworthy causes. We are becoming a nation of very elderly people and that in itself creates many more problems.

From: Tim Mickleburgh, Boulevard Avenue, Grimsby.

I CERTAINLY don’t agree with any more charges made for essential NHS treatment (The Yorkshire Post, March 4). It is bad enough that people have to pay for dental care, which can run well into three figures. Consequently, many poorer individuals simply don’t go to the dentist, as can be seen in the state of their teeth.

I think that if you are going to raise revenue, then I can’t see why someone shouldn’t pay for hospital meals. After all, you’d otherwise have to feed yourself. And car parking charges must cover the cost of providing such a facility, otherwise those who can’t drive will be subsidising those who do.

From: June Warner, Kirk Deighton, Wetherby.

ANSWERING Les Arnott’s contention (The Yorkshire Post, March 5), Ukip is to the right of the Greens, Lib Dems and most Labour. A comparison with the Tories, after their shift to the liberal left under Cameron is, however, much more tricky. There are many Tories not of that liberal ilk who may well be to the right of a great many Ukip voters and politicians.

Whereas Ukip does take more former Tory votes than it does Labour, this is no longer by a huge margin. One poll suggested, perhaps surprising to many, that Ukip has taken almost a fifth of its votes from the Liberal Democrats.

Ultimately, policy must be the decider. Nigel Farage embraces patriotism yet has strongly warned against nationalism. The party is largely neutral on moral issues and wants these decided by referenda.

The party is completely opposed to imperialism and any intervention in other people’s wars.

Most worthily, the party has never attempted to undermine the Christian faith.