Your views (October 23, 2020):
FAIR play to Marcus Rashford for acting on what he feels and indeed what he has experienced in his younger days with regards to going without and going hungry (petition to end child poverty).
It is beyond belief that Boris Johnson won’t extend free meals to needy kids during the upcoming half term.
We have 650 MPs who have been ‘awarded’ another pay rise of £3K / year
650 x£3,000 = £1,950,000
Almost £2million.
Wouldn’t that be great for needy kids and show a hell of a lot of good intentions from our MPs.
It would certainly show them in a much better light during these times when job losses and loss of salaries will only impact more on needy children in the UK.
It’s 2020 and we should address poverty, particularly child poverty.
P Smith, Southcrest
I AM receiving constant complaints about the number 51 Diamond Bus.
It’s the one children use from Batchley to attend Trinity High School.
They are only allowing 13 people on at a time due to Covid-19.
I have tried asking for possible leeway but have been told no.
Youngsters are arriving late, why should they have to set off earlier?
Councillor Pattie Hill (Batchley and Brockhill Ward)
WELL done to your two letter writers last week who were fearless in forensically shining a light on burning issues (Redditch Standard).
P Smith says the money invested in HS2 should be spent on furloughing British workers and not spent on the ‘likes of India and China’.
This is genius.
Admittedly, the UK doesn’t send a penny in aid to either of those countries and HS2 will provide around 200,000 jobs and several thousand apprenticeships but he/she is right – we should be furloughing these workers instead.
This would be far simpler and not involve so many early starts.
Elsewhere I Welch says our MP should get involved in the disgraceful Horizon scandal and that there should be an inquiry.
Well, our MP could but she’s probably aware of the laws involving Contempt of Court.
The DPP are looking at many cases of possible criminality – essentially of malicious prosecution – within the Post Office and Fujitsu.
Elsewhere, 39 (and rising) convictions of Post Office staff have been referred to the Court of Appeal and, in June, the government specifically said in The House that an inquiry would take place once the courts have done their work.
Other than the above these two letter writers strike hammer blows for free speech and show the British public should never be taken for fools.
H Bellaby, Feckenham
I WOULD like to thank all the doctors and nursing staff at the Alexandra Hospital Redditch and the Worcestershire Royal Hospital for looking after me on Tuesday, October 13 when I collapsed at home with an emergency heart problem.
It has been my worst nightmare after looking after my donor heart that this would happen with this awful Covid-19 virus but nothing was too much for these wonderful NHS people and glad to say I was taken to Worcestershire Royal for a procedure then back to the Alex on the 15th then home on the 16th and am now recovering.
C Green, Redditch
WHAT a fantastic idea, a walk through Safari Park at the back of the Forge Mill Needle Museum with zebra trotting around, meercats and the odd gazelle (Redditch Standard).
We could also have hippos in the Arrow Valley Lake, monkeys in the Southcrest woods, and herds of wildebeests roaming the plains of the football pitches at Morton Stanley Park.
J Solomon, Redditch
ACCORDING to a new survey, 46 per cent of Brits believe their household uses under 20 litres of water a day, which is roughly equivalent to taking a two minute shower.
In fact, the true figure is closer to 142 litres per person per day meaning an average family of four could use more than 500 litres each day!
This summer we saw a surge in demand for water, as more people stayed at home.
This is why Water UK and water efficiency experts Waterwise have joined forces to encourage people to think about the amount of water they are using.
We all have a role to play in saving water and even small changes, such as using a watering can instead of a hose or cutting the length of your shower, can make a big difference.
C McGourty, Water UK
N Russell, Waterwise
2020 has been a difficult year for everyone, and that is bound to have an impact on people’s mental health. Many blind and partially sighted people have faced anxiety, sadness and even fear about the unique challenges they have experienced.
That is why the Royal National Institute of Blind People (RNIB) has worked with Mind to launch Emergency Mental Health Sessions for local blind and partially sighted people.
The sessions are free and offer people with sight loss the opportunity to speak to a counsellor for an hour over the phone about however they are feeling and any problems that are on their mind.
If you or someone you know could benefit from speaking to someone, please call the RNIB Helpline on 0303 123 9999. We can set up a chat within 36 hours and the service can be used as many times as needed.
It’s been a tough year but you don’t need to suffer in silence.
A Hawkins, RNIB
