Ruling shows ridiculous state of Europe

OUR unelected masters in Europe have spoken and we’re all supposed to lie down and roll over. From the end of 2012, gender discrimination will no longer be acceptable when calculating insurance risk.

This will apply to insurance premiums as well as annuity rates, and will mean that young female drivers will see their insurance premiums rise dramatically, while male pension payments in situations where an annuity has been purchased, will similarly fall dramatically.

I cannot believe that the combined stupidity of educated bureaucrats could conceive such an il-thought-out change, but indeed they have and it seems as though we are just going to accept it.

Where has common sense disappeared to? Are we so devoid of deciding that enough is enough?

To the European bureaucrats and judges sitting in their plush offices paid for by the taxpayer, please apply common sense where common sense has prevailed for centuries.

Don’t try and make us the same or erase the differences between the sexes that make life wonderful.

I don’t want a “one size fits all” antiseptic world. In many situations a man or a woman has preferable characteristics and it’s a better world that we inhabit because of these differences.

The fact that Europe’s powers-that-be have time to apply skewed logic to this matter just shows the irrelevance of their positions, and how ridiculous the European state has become.

From: Linda Stephenson, Leeds.

I MUST say I did not realise how spineless we have become. We have not even tried to mount a protest.

I, for one, do object very strongly as, my pension age has gone from 60 to 62 then to 64 and now, they propose to put it up to 66. This is an increase for me of a further two years, with little or no notice, so I can not even start to save for this.

I, as many other women born in 1954, left school at the age of 15 years, and have worked full-time ever since. I have not had any career breaks.

I have already paid in my voluntary contributions for 41 years. I miss the age of 64 retirement by six weeks. How can this be fair?

I was told when I left school by the civil servant who gave me my National Insurance card: “If you’re lucky, you will get a good husband that will take care of you, if not you can look forward to retirement at the age of 60.”

He then shook my hand and gave me the document. Surely this constituted a verbal contract?

Why should we suffer yet again? It appears that my generation seem to fall foul yet again, as the goalposts are constantly being moved.

Who is going to act?

Memories of young heroes

From: Clare Prenton, 3 Kittlegairy Gardens, Peebles, Scottish Borders.

I AM a professional director/writer and would like to write a play about the Leeds Pals regiment and the story of Horace Iles, one of the youngest soldiers to die in the First World War. I am particularly interested in finding any living relatives of the Iles family to ask permission to write about Horace and Florrie’s letters to Horace.

In addition, any tales of similar stories from people who lost very young soldiers who may have lied about the age to go to war, would be most welcome.

I would be interested in speaking or hearing from people with direct information about their loved ones who, like Horace, wanted to fight for their country at a very early age, to the extent they were prepared to pretend to be older.

Where is our democracy?

From: Miss P Johnson, Cross Flatts Grove, Leeds.

WE frequently hear about the democracy or lack of it in other countries but do we really have democracy in this country? We vote but do we get the policies that we thought we were going to see put into action?

Tony Blair never held a referendum on the euro because he knew that he would lose it. We are invited to take part in consultations but what is the point if the decision has already been made?

A classic example was the fluoridation consultation that was held in Southampton in autumn 2008. Some 72 per cent voted against it, and so did Hampshire County Council – but the unelected, unaccountable Strategic Health Authority voted for it and they have the power to order the water company to add it.

What has happened to democracy? Why is it that the opinions of bodies from all over the British Isles and dentists carry more weight than the views of local people that would have to drink the water? The law needs to be changed. Our democracy needs an overhaul and perhaps a resurrection.

Waiving the flag

From: MP Fitzgerald, The Crescent, Northallerton.

I WONDER why it is that we are regularly seeing letters concerning the Union Jack. To the majority, including myself, it is just a flag and looks exactly the same either way so can I suggest to these whiners and whingers that they have their flags endorsed in large bold letters right across the middle: “This way up.”

No one that I have spoken to can tell me how a flag can be “upside down”. It’s a pity some people don’t have more important things to worry about.

A more important concern of mine is the continued threat at the Post Office counters of the loss of benefit payments (Yorkshire Post, March 4). If this goes on, we will see the loss of all payments over the counter.