Saturday's Letters: Britain can blame bone-headed socialism for its plight

Nothing to do with the policies of the Labour Government, then? Nothing to do with Gordon Brown's "boom and bust"? The banks have been

demonised for pursuing policies that were promoted by the Labour Government.

When Labour took office, Britain was the fourth largest economy in the world. We are now seventh – and are set to fall out of the top 10 by 2013.

The Labour Government has borrowed 800bn. The Bank of England has been forced to print 200bn of "funny money". Even when the economy was at its peak (2005-7), Gordon Brown ran a massive budget deficit, in which expenditure exceeded revenues. Our gold reserves were depleted (sold off at rock bottom prices) and private pension funds impoverished (tax raids).

By contrast, the public sector workforce expanded to six million. Oh, and the feather-bedded, public sector pensions liability now stands at 1.4 trillion! Our structured deficit is now set to rise to 14 per cent of GDP (gross domestic product). There is a yawning gap between

revenues and expenditure. It is unsustainable. That is Labour's legacy: an economic minefield.

Mr Mitchell's lament for British manufacturing industry is somewhat belated: the crucible was the 1970s – the Labour-dominated decade of destruction, which culminated in the "winter of discontent".

Old industries like steel and ship building were strike-bound and paralysed. Orders were not met, orders were lost. Existing and

potential customers were driven into the welcoming arms of our foreign competitors.

British Leyland (car manufacturing) became a by-word for militancy and intimidation (no secret ballots for strike action, just a show of hands under the watchful eyes of "shop stewards").

And what action did the paralytic Labour Government take? It clung feebly to power, bulwarked by the Liberals (the "Lib-Lab pact"). Pathetic!

A near-bankrupt economy was Labour's legacy to Margaret Thatcher. No, Mr Mitchell, we've had a belly full of bone-headed socialism. The

country needs a new leader of courage and conviction... but there isn't one.

From: William Snowden, Butterbowl Gardens, Farnley Ring Road, Leeds.

From: Allen Davies, Heathfield Court, Grimsby, North East Lincs.

AUSTIN Mitchell's analysis of the problems of the UK economy is largely sound, but he does not go far enough back in history.

Relative decline can be traced back almost 150 years. Britain was ill-prepared for the scientific and technological demands of the second Industrial Revolution.

On chemical industries – chemical and electrical – the UK fell far behind Germany. There was, and remains, a contempt for scientific thought, and an anti-intellectualism which rejects any sort of abstract thought and theory.

I see no prospect of improvement. Politically, it is conservation which is at the root of our problems. For around two-thirds of the 19th and 20th centuries, and for 35 years in the second half of the 20th century, we have had Conservative governments.

In the past, they were dominated by the landed gentry, more recently by the City of London. Landowners lived off their rents, the financial classes off their commissions and neither produced anything.

They had no interest in, and no need for manufacturing. Gentlemen do not soil their hands. Meanwhile, we never had a strong and influential manufacturing class.

I see no prospect of change here, either. The future facing Britain is, I fear, bleak. How we resolve our problems, I do not know. Old habits die hard.

The dreadful mistakes that led to horror

From: BJ Cussons, Curly Hill, Ilkley.

THE indescribable behaviour of two young evildoers in Edlington highlights the dreadful mistakes we are making in our society today.

There is a crying need to follow some of the adages of our

predecessors. "The devil finds work for evil hands to do" and sometimes "it is necessary to be cruel to be kind" are two that spring to mind. The wishy-washy ideas forced on to us by so-called liberal thinkers have brought us to the stage we are at today.

At the first evidence of crime, strict disciplinary measures must be enforced upon wrongdoers. These can take the form of training for those who have no parental guidance, and corporal punishment for those who should and do know better but just don't care.

Staffing for such training would be a far better use of the nation's resources than employing some social services staff who in so many cases are unable to reverse the problems that have developed because the young do not get good guidance from any source.

Society no longer protects the innocent. Feather bedding the guilty is not working – either for them or for the rest of us. Nearly every court case nowadays has a string of other offences behind it. How many more must suffer unnecessarily until we put order back into society?

From: H Marjorie Gill, Clarence Drive, Menston.

IS it not a fact that we are all in a fashion to blame for the tragedy which has occurred in Edlington?

It is just not satisfactory to leave matters to the police and social services alone. Without our involvement, they are fighting a losing battle. It must be very frightening to go to a household where violence is the norm and threats abound. For underpaid and ill-trained social workers, how much easier to turn a blind eye and hope the problem goes away?

It is all very well to blame police for not acting in some instances, but we must remember that all policing is only possible with the willingness of the policed.

Harry finally has his chips

From: Charles Rushton, Pasture Close, Strensall, York.

I SEE that Harry Ramsden's is to change hands yet again (Yorkshire

Post, January 21).

Harry was a wise old bird, his shop in Westgate, Bradford was much the same as many other fisheries in Bradford at that time, busy. However, his genius was in realising that the site where he commenced trading at White Cross was in a unique position on the busy routes from Bradford/Leeds to Ilkley at a time when large numbers of people were discovering Wharfedale, lots of them partial to haddock and chips.

His construction of his palace with its luxurious features, outsales area, and not least his batter and beef dripping, were the catalysts for huge success.

Since that time, changes have been many. I last visited some three years ago – car park empty, ditto inside. Gone the old familiar decor and restaurant layout. Gone the welcoming waitress. Finally, having read the large menu and finding a mention at about item 45 of haddock with all the trimmings extra accompanied by a large wine list at an average of 10, we opted for the door and a move on to Murgatroyds at Yeadon.

They still know the secrets of a fish and chip restaurant!

I doubt that a new regime will restore the old palace to its premier position. The visions of yesteryear are perhaps misleading, but maybe attention to detail will achieve something. As to spreading the doctrine worldwide, a pipedream. It certainly won't be that of the old Harry, all that remains is the name, spread over packs of batter, pre-packed meals and tins of mushy peas! Even the proud boast of "the largest in the world" is a myth. The Canadians have several in Vancouver with a monster at Steventon on the coast, a virtual copy of Old Harry.

How school kept on track

From: Stephen Davidson, Headmaster, Bradford Grammar School, Keighley Road, Bradford.

MAY I express my congratulations and sincere thanks to the management and employees of Northern Rail who, in some of the most difficult conditions in recent memory, managed to keep the trains running.

Our school relies very heavily on the local rail network with over 500 pupils travelling to and from Frizinghall Station every day on the Wharfe and Aire Valley lines. That we were open for business for nine out of the 10 difficult days was largely due to the commitment of Northern Rail.

Why it's hard to swallow the Cadbury capitulation

From: Alan Ogden, Oxford Road, Gomersal, West Yorkshire.

THE capitulation of Cadbury to Kraft is just the latest in a long line of great British companies to be sold to foreign predators.

This is just another indication of the downward spiral this once great country is now descending into. We are fast becoming a second-rate nation, with only our past glories and history to look back at with any sort of pride.

For our small island nation, which has achieved so much, and given so much towards the progression of our planet, has done so by punching far above its weight.

Now, at the start of the 21st century, we find ourselves in a dire position, virtually bankrupt, with a discredited and avaricious financial service industry, and a political class in disrepute.

How is it possible to turn from being dependent on a financial sector, which has caused so much damage to our country, to a more dynamic manufacturing-based economy, when the very companies in these industries we need to achieve this transition, are allowed to disappear?

This current crop of politicians from all parties have neither the guts nor the will to put this country and its people first and foremost.

Only when we get the politicians the nation deserves, will we begin to drag ourselves back from the abyss.

From: Janet Berry, Hambleton, Selby.

IT is devastating news that Cadbury is to be taken over by Kraft.

Thousands of people responded to a petition to Lord Mandelson to

protest against this, but to no avail. I expect the same thing will happen to Cadbury as it did to Rowntree when it was taken over by Nestl – factories closed down and opened in other countries where

labour is cheap, with the loss of more English jobs.

We rely on our Armed Forces

From: Sheelagh Best, Cartwright Lane, Beverley.

GROWING up during the Second World War, we quite happily had our collection tins for Warship week, Battle of Britain week and Marching to Victory week.

We also had time off school to help pick potatoes and sometimes to help with harvesting.

I suppose we took patriotism for granted and were taught priorities.

In the present troubled times, I am at a loss to understand the innate antipathy "New" Labour seems to have regarding the Armed Forces (often ill-equipped) and farmers (neglected and underpaid).

We are an island race, dependent on our forces and partly on our food producers.

Only fools ignore facts such as these.

Applause for the new Crucible

From: Mrs Marianne Downing, Lowfield Road, Wheatley Hills, Doncaster.

REGARDING the letter under the heading "Theatre of the Absurd" (Yorkshire Post, January 19), I presume G Hodgson does not like the theatre, after reading his very unwarranted, critical letter concerning the refurbishment of the Crucible Theatre at Sheffield and the Royal Opera House at Covent Garden.

I am a regular theatregoer and I was quite willing to help with the refurbishment of the Crucible.

I obviously don't know how much he knows about or has even seen the theatre, but when I read that he describes it as a small theatre, I can only surmise that he doesn't know what he is really talking about.