Thursday's Letters: Airport is a good neighbour whatever the time

The issue before Doncaster Council is quite simply an enabling measure to ensure that the airport can accept "noisier" planes at night time. This, however, also has to be placed in perspective.

While Robin Hood Airport wishes to attract certain operators

of "noisier aircraft" and, specifically, freight operations at night, the number of so called QC4 aircraft operating worldwide is dwindling and, over a few years, technology and operations will have advanced to such an extent that no aircraft will be above QC3, even at night.

At present, this relief on night time restrictions will, it is

estimated, only entail at maximum operational capacity, only two

aircraft a week at the heightened noise level of QC4 at night, and forbids any aircraft of any noise level above this at all.

As specified in your report, to remain competitive, the airport has to attract these kind of operations at night and the number of people affected will be substantially fewer than operations at other similar sized airports.

We would further question Doncaster Council's assertion of "a large number of representations" against night flying. How many is this large number?

When we were campaigning for an airport in the period 2000-2004, we collected thousands of signatures in support of developing RAF Finningley into an international airport, and it was clearly stated at the public inquiry that this facility would be a round-the-clock operation.

A number of objectors, albeit small in number, have been taken in by a minority of campaigners who still think the airport should never have been developed.

We would counter this with the many thousands of local residents, some of whom are our members, who do not object to the night flying, are quite content that Robin Hood Airport is a good neighbour and a welcome income generator for a deprived region, which is something the parish councils should be reflecting on.

From: Andrew Bosmans, chair, Friends of Doncaster Airport (FODSA), Brander Close, Woodfield Plantation, Balby.

Politicians must keep their pledges

From: Barrie Frost, Watson's Lane, Reighton, Filey.

"OUR security interest is to protect our streets against terrorism."

"We have to turn the tide in the fight against insurgency."

"We make the judgment as to what protects us best against terrorism."

"The security of the British people comes first."

"If an immigrant commits a crime, he will be deported."

All these statements were made by our Prime Minister, Gordon Brown.

Are these statements simply made in the knowledge they are the ones the British people want to hear? If such policies will never be

implemented, it shows that yet again the people are being wilfully and disgracefully deceived?

If, however, they are the honest views of the Prime Minister and the overwhelming majority, they seem to be totally insignificant and too easy to ignore by others with more influence, as confirmed by:

n An immigration tribunal decides Iraqi immigrant, Laith Alani, soon to be released from prison after killing two Wakefield doctors, should not be deported as it will be against his human rights and could endanger the safety of Iraqi people.

Was the Prime Minister's statements meaningless?

n Militant Islamic fanatics are still allowed to openly preach their hatred for Britain and the British way of life. The Government uses huge amounts of taxpayers' money to provide these fanatics, and their families, with welfare benefits to support a very comfortable lifestyle, and this insults all decent, hard working people.

How can allowing this combat terrorism and insurgency and protect our streets against attack?

It is very important that our politicians are made fully aware of the British people's concerns at the direction our country is being taken by unelected and unrepresentative bodies, and the forthcoming General Election is an opportunity to make our views very clear and to demand more than lip-service in order to win our vote.

Bonanza of a Monday night

From: Mrs Margaret Ratcliffe, Wynford Terrace, Leeds.

IAN McMillan's memory lets him down on one point (Yorkshire Post, February 2). Bonanza was very definitely shown at 8pm on a

Monday.

I am sure about this because I remember vividly pleading to be allowed to stay up and watch it each week.

My mother used Bonanza as a very effective deterrent to keep me in line. A slight misdemeanor would bring the threat: "You won't watch Bonanza for that, madam!"

I don't recall the threat ever being carried out; I don't think I

missed an episode.

I was devoted to Little Joe and am very sorry none of the four main characters is still with us.

My husband, Joe, kindly bought me a box DVD set of all the episodes a little while ago, which we thoroughly enjoyed watching. And I still hum the theme tune.

GP night calls a failure

From: Dr Ian Jollie, North Frodingham, Driffield, East Yorkshire.

I RETIRED 11 years ago from a busy three-man rural practice (Yorkshire Post, February 1). After 35 years of doing our own on-call, things changed.

It was decided our on-call could be covered by neighbouring towns.

We first used a deputising service centred in Hull which was

unsatisfactory. So we joined a newly formed co-operative of 28 doctors,

centred at the Westwood Hospital at Beverley.

This worked well for ourselves and, importantly, for our patients, although my wife did comment as I was leaving the house at 10.30pm with sandwiches and a sleeping bag to do a night shift for the co-operative: "Is this progress?"

A doctor can only cover so many patients, and from what I hear, not enough doctors cover rural East Riding and the towns within.

Woe betide anyone who has an acute and worrying illness at 6pm on a Friday.

Yes, I think the Government botched negotiations and the modern doctor must be wary about being overpaid for doing less and less work and will lose skills, job satisfaction, caring abilities and respect.

I do hope it is not too late.

One-man bin collections

From: Norman J Hazell, Woolgreaves Drive, Sandal, Wakefield.

I'M just back from a long break with family, who live 45km out of Melbourne, Australia.

Watching the refuse collection, I couldn't help thinking about the desperate situation in Leeds before we left (in November).

All across the district of Yarra Vale, wheeled bins are pulled out to the kerbside, all cars well out of the way, then along comes a truck, a side-loader operated by a driver.

I asked him how he manages without help. He replied, "No worries", and along the road he went.

I was surprised to be told it has been a one-man show for more than a decade, without problems, and even more of a surprise when wheeled bins were emptied on Christmas Day and on New Year's Day.

Council that's always reaching for our cheque books

From: William Dixon Smith, Welland Rise, Acomb, York.

YORK may be a small city, but York City Council certainly has big

ideas, or "visions" as they call them these days.

From the uncompleted, and now decaying Barbican Centre, to the never-to-be-commenced Grand Council Office, these initiatives have meant momentary renown for officers, and monetary disaster for residents.

Repeated failure does not discourage our officers. As long as there is council tax to be collected, and admiring councillors to applaud, they are eager to triple-spend whenever spring with her open coffers comes around.

Last year, it was the vision of a Cultural Centre that had them reaching for our cheque books. Councillors were ecstatic, and the 150 residents and visitors who attended the consultation were (reportedly) enthusiastic.

Of course, the council didn't mean what you and I mean by culture. We have plenty of that in York: the finest cathedral in northern Europe, a splendid art gallery, a thriving art scene and wall-to-wall music. What they meant was cosmetic culture such as would make a splash in the holiday brochures.

To show their cultural credentials, officers sold off the entire stock of valuable reference works. Happily, no one further away than Guildhall was convinced, and the hoped for funding was denied.

The council reacted by cutting their funding for our local arts, which were now clearly expendable.

This year's vision is "Volunteer Recruitment". Persuading people to work for nothing has an obvious appeal for a spendy cash-strapped council.

The council shrewdly disdains a volunteer policy (otherwise volunteers might start demanding rights). It was decided to put this valuable experience to general use.

A handy booklet was produced to show organisations how they, too, could recruit volunteers without according them rights. It didn't cost much, so residents were pleased.

I don't know about the volunteers.

Why Austin Mitchell isn't PM

From: Colwyn Grace, Church Close, Maltby, Rotherham.

BOB Swallow, (Yorkshire Post, January 27) asks why Austin Mitchell

isn't Prime Minister?

Quite simple, the answer is writ large on page six of that same issue. The article is set centre page and headlined, "MP repays 10,000 after 'careless' mistake".

If an elected representative of the people (who describes himself as geriatric) can make errors in his personal financial affairs which

require him to repay the sum of 10,000, then I would respectfully suggest that that person is not a fit person to be running the affairs of the country in any capacity, and definitely not as PM.

I don't want "careless geriatrics" running this country. I want

responsible, level-headed MPs and Ministers.

I wonder where we can get any of them?

Self-inflicted pain in Palestine

From: Bob Crowther, High Street, Crigglestone, Wakefield.

RESPONDING to the letter submitted by Geoffrey F Bryant (Yorkshire Post, February 1) in which he draws attention to an apparent contradiction over the Israeli government despatching medical and rescue teams to assist in Haiti, I am puzzled by his comparison that Israeli help in such circumstances can be aligned with the plight of

the Palestinians and their allies.

Taking into account the fact that the terrible tragedy in Haiti is the result of a natural occurrence, it is disproportionate to compare this disaster with the Palestinian problem, which is 95 per cent self-inflicted.

Ignored rights of captive couple

From: P Wade, Locksley Gardens, Birdwell, Barnsley.

HARDLY a murmur from human rights voices on the plight of the

Chandlers, the British couple captured by Somali pirates more than

three months ago.

Had they been criminals being ill-treated and held without trial in a jail in China, everyone from Gordon Brown to the Archbishop of

Canterbury would have been on TV condemning their tormentors.

But the Chandlers are ordinary citizens who have never done anything wrong in their lives. They have never been a burden on the state and they have contributed to society throughout their lives.

Hardly surprising that human rights laws are treated with such derision when they are applied selectively.