SIR - I was much dismayed but not surprised to hear of the injuries suffered by a young mother when a derelict house was set ablaze in Little Horton. It's inevitable that these eyesores will eventually become dangerous.

The Council knows who owns these houses so why doesn't it summons the owners for allowing their property to fall into a dangerous state?

It seems the Council prefers the building of more houses, putting further strain on over-stretched resources. I don't understand how anyone can afford to let a house go to rack and ruin.

This area also has its share of properties that have been derelict for years, and living next door to such a house is misery and the whole area starts to decay.

It's madness to let houses rot when so many are homeless.

G Graydon, Nottingham Street, Thornbury.

SIR - I feel compelled to write after reading David Barnett's comments (T&A, May 2) about the election count.

Was the man observing the same count as I was? I think not. I was one of those "smartly-attired colleagues" accompanying Stewart Paul Williams, BNP candidate for Idle ward, at the Abundant Life Centre.

I went outside on three occasions for a breath of fresh air. Perhaps Mr Barnett chose not to notice the BNP rosette pinned on my lapel. I certainly wish he had approached me. Access to the toilets was through the foyer, where supporters and members of the public were assembled. The crowd was largely Asian.

I did not feel intimidated or threatened and spoke to several people throughout the evening and, yes, I did go to the toilet!

I find Mr Barnett's comments derisive, unjust and untrue. The BNP is a legalised party and lest we should forget we live in a democracy.

Oh, and by the way, I am not a racist!

Mrs J A Whitfield, Springdale Crescent, Idle.

SIR - I support the anti-BNP stance taken by your paper on April 30, and in equal measure applaud your encouragement for all to use their vote.

I was however totally dismayed to read in your editorial of May 2 that you clearly feel we, the electorate, had got it terribly wrong. No overall control reflects how Bradfordians cast their votes, and I am really sorry if we didn't vote as the T&A wished but we have a democracy, and long may it endure.

Mrs S Elliott, Sherbourne Road, Idle.

l Editor's note: The T&A is fiercely independent and non-partisan. Our point was that all the main political parties needed to do was to persuade more people to vote so that the majority of local people exercise their democratic rights.

SIR - I hope that following last Wednesday's serious injury road-traffic accident on Rodley Lane the local highway authority is looking at ways to improve the safety of pedestrians who take their lives into their hands when attempting to cross this busy, fast, three-lane dual carriageway.

While the stretch of road between Bierley Church and Staygate roundabout has a speed limit of 40mph, anyone who uses this road would say that this limit is broken on a daily basis.

There is one zebra crossing on this section and I for one would be reluctant to use it unless the road was clear of traffic for as far as I could see.

Why not change this from a zebra to a puffin? The Council obviously has the necessary finance - just look at the pedestrian crossings that have sprung up on Carlisle Road in Manningham - a busy road yes, but not one that carries fast-moving traffic.

Or look at the traffic lights that recently appeared on Otley Road junction with Idle Road, Undercliffe, hardly a junction that could be described as an accident hot spot, unlike the junction further up Otley Road at Northcote Road which could.

Perhaps the following could be considered for Rooley Lane: reduce the limit from 40 to 30; install speed cameras; erect a pedestrian barrier in the centre of the road along this length. Something needs to be done!

Brian Pickford, Summerbridge Crescent, Eccleshill.

SIR - In response to the letter from Zana Brown (T&A, May 7) I would like to make it clear that my earlier letter was not about my bins being left unemptied by the refuse collectors. It was purely on administrative incompetence, red tape and sheer frustration.

I made nine phone calls to the Council offices, each time seeming to be in contact with a different person, having to give home, address, telephone number etc all over again. That was my complaint.

Bureaucracy with knobs on!

By the way, I have always admired and have nothing but praise for the refuse collectors. They do a great job for which I thank them.

Philomena Hingston, Leaventhorpe Avenue, Fairweather Green, Bradford.

SIR - People talk about contempt of court, but the truth is that courts themselves are contemptible by the silly sentences they hand out.

Take Tony Martin's case for example - they put him in prison when he didn't deserve it. Now they have stopped his early release because he "may be a risk to further burglars."

If that is so, then he will still be a threat in 28 days when he is released. What baloney!

He only did what I and many many more men in this country would do. The law today is an ass.

Now they tell us you can't hurt a burglar if he breaks into your house. They had better watch out if they break in to mine!

This government has lost the plot. They don't even know how many people who have been refused asylum here have disappeared into the community and into the black economy.

N Brown, Peterborough Place, Undercliffe.

SIR - Proposals are afoot to bring in horse passports by December this year. Failure by the horse owner to do this will result in a fine, or three months in jail.

Admittedly this is a one-off payment (£27 per horse in some cases) but who benefits from this? Is this another way of the Government raking in money from horse lovers after they have milked the Lotto dry? Is it a safeguard for horses? Is it to prevent horse owners being ripped off?

No it is not! It is another bureaucratic move by the EEC in Brussels to protect their own population who are partial to horsemeat.

This means to say that if a horse is registered as a future food source, there are certain drugs that it cannot be given irrespective of the horse's needs. In effect, this is a licence to protect the EEC horse-eating population from possible contamination through this disgusting treatment of horses.

Trevor Williams-Berry, Bredon Avenue, Wrose

SIR - Matthew Lockwood's thirst for TV innovation (Voice of Youth, May 7) sounds daring. Here's my opinion!

ITV1 should axe cheapo rubbish like You've Been Framed; programmes featuring losers such as Blind Date; and wallpaper TV magazines typified by This Morning!

As for BBC1, some of its freshest output is for children such as the consumer show Short Change using youngish presenters.

John C Taylor, Park Hill Drive, Bradford.

SIR - I am trying to track down the orange signs that were used to display railway station names during the 1950s and 1960s.

Due to local connections I am particularly interested in finding "Ilkley," but any of the local stations would be great.

If anyone has any of these signs stored in their attic or garage I would be grateful to hear from you.

Simon Baker, Marnixlaan, Overijse, Belgium

SIR - Internationally-recognised Saltaire without the historic fairground and the unique Glen Tramway, right, would be like another Yorkshire delight, fish and chips without salt and vinegar; it just wouldn't be the same.

A flood of despair comes over you when our planners consider decent history and heritage of the city. Sweep it all away if it has no commercial value.

There seems to be no room for the quaint and unusual, but travel the country to find other authorities avidly restoring their treasures from the past and increasing visitor numbers.

The Shipley Area Planning Panel does not have to join in with the negativeness. Putting aside its rubber stamp, it should listen to the people rather than the planners.

A National Trust approach should be taken with the Council acquiring the site. Councillor Anne Hawkesworth could add it to her arts and leisure portfolio, and turn disappointment into satisfaction.

If the rape of our heritage continues, what next?

Ilkley's Cow and Calf rocks sold off to the stone merchants?

R J Lacey, Wrose Road, Shipley.