Sweetening the Government

FOR many years now, “experts” have been conducting “surveys” into the dangers of sugary drinks on teeth and oral hygiene, diabetes and bad skin.

They found an increase in children’s rotten teeth due to sugary shushers (“shush, 
drink this”), athletes through “power drinks” and people generally drinking too much of the product and getting fat and/or diabetic.

The following solutions have been suggested: ban them, highlight dangers, put pictures of rotten teeth on bottles/cans, on a par with diseased lungs on cigarette packets, along with obese, spotty people and reduce the amount of sugar.

No they didn’t! They suggested putting 20p per litre on them, with a view to netting the Government a billion pounds a year!

From: Lester May, Reachview Close, Camden Town, London.

THE Defence Secretary is right to say that military league tables are not a realistic guide to defence capability – but some numbers do matter.

Our £7bn a year Royal Air Force certainly aims to be in the top flight.

It claims 889 “deployable” aircraft, placing the RAF in the world’s top 10 air forces, but all is not as it seems in cloud cuckoo land. Included are the Red Arrows and 258 flying training aircraft, 119 of which are commercially-owned elementary trainers.

Another 146 are air cadets’ planes, including 81 gliders. It seems cruel to add that the RAF even claims the 12 vintage aircraft of the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight in its “in-service fleet” of 889 – the venerable Lancaster and Spitfires, indeed.

From: John L Brigg, Fairfax Road, Cullingworth, Bradford.

I READ many adverse comments about the NHS, which prompts me to write in praise of the service provided by Mr Rob Gardner, head of audiology at Bradford Royal Infirmary.

I have used hearing aids for at least 10 years and have always been treated with courtesy and understanding when using the audiology department. I have just been provided with new digital aids, and was given an on time one hour appointment, carried out with patience and efficiency.

Thank you to all concerned.