Letters to the Editor

SIR, - I read with interest the report in the Ilkley Gazette of July 25, detailing 'a major project aimed at ending Ilkley's traffic headache'.

The writer is quite right that the plans for dealing with Denton Bridge are controversial. He claims that 'Denton Bridge looks set to be made one-way'.

I live in Burley-in-Wharfedale and work in the village of Denton, and so cross the bridge at least ten times a week. During normal rush-hour times, when the main users are familiar with the bridge's limitations, there is little trouble and traffic generally flows well.

It becomes a problem only when a motorist travelling across the bridge in a southerly direction, intends to turn right, across the traffic leaving Ilkley. This is an extremely dangerous manoeuvre and one that I personally avoid.

Also, it can take some time for such a motorist to find an appropriate gap in the traffic on the A65. During this time the vehicle blocks the passage of subsequent cars wishing to turn left upon leaving the bridge, causing a build-up of cars on the bridge itself, as well as on the 'turn right' lane in the middle of the A65.

I do not believe that traffic should be allowed to turn right at the southern end of the bridge. Preventing this would, alone, remove the traffic problem at Denton Bridge.

Or, as an alternative solution, could the bridge traffic not be included in the controls afforded by the proposed new set of traffic lights at the bottom of Wheatley Lane?

Personally, I do not believe that Ilkley's 'traffic headache' will ever be fully resolved until Ilkley has a bypass.

Mrs WENDY KING

3 Woodpecker Road,

Burley-in-Wharfedale.

Thoughts on war

SIR, - Some thoughts about contemplating war with Iraq:

Assumptions - 1 Not all American citizens can be convinced that a further response to the terrible events of September 11, 2001 is to force by warlike means a regime change in Iraq.

2 Not a few American citizens might be happy if there were to be a regime change in the United States.

3 UK citizens are very undecided about the merits of starting a war to rid Iraq of its President and support for such a war is not strong.

4. There is no revealed new cause for a strike against Iraq; there have been many reasons for judging that the regime in Iraq is unjust and inimical to some of its own people, to its neighbours and to other major states.

5 There is no unanimity in the United Nations membership for a strike against Iraq, though there are UN resolutions with which Iraq has not complied.

6. A war against Iraq would not with any certainty make for a just peace and an end to terrorism in any part of the world.

7 A liberal democracy with fair elections according to a clear written constitution is the right way to maintain government, justice and security in the states of the world, and there are many states where such a democratic system does not exist. There are many flagrant uses of force by regimes against their own citizens and those of other states which should be condemned as much as those of the Iraqi regime.

8 The threat of international terrorism alone does not justify unilateral responses based in the threat of superior force on "those who are not for us".

9 Weapons of mass destruction are available to the military of many states in the world, and agreements not to use them must be secured, maintained and reinforced by agreed procedures of inspection and report.

10 There are vast and terrible inequities in the distribution of wealth, power, food, clean water and education. There are major threats to our natural environment from uncontrolled economic development.

All states and organisations should recognise that efforts to resolve these inequities and problems should have priority in international relations. We are all neighbours on a planet together and the search for peace, justice and love for each other should be our paramount and prayerful task.

Conclusions: 1. There is no case for supporting the US administration in any war against Iraq.

2. The UK Government should redouble its efforts to bring about a change of approach by the US administration through all the available channels.

3. The UK Government should engage with all states which possess weapons of mass destruction in a continuing negotiation over inspection, control and elimination.

4. The threat of national and international terrorism must be addressed through continuing efforts to reduce the great inequities and injustices which generate such threats, not simply through attempts at heightened security.

5. We should promote co-operation at all levels between communities, regions and states, through education and the mass media, to end the spread of ideologies which foster conflict, suspicion, hate, violence and discrimination.

6. We should engage in a process of self-examination to ensure our own adherence to the principles of co-operation, good neighbourliness, respect for difference and critical support for attempts to do good in the planet.

Dennis Warwick

15, The Copse,

Burley-in-Wharfedale.

House prices

SIR, - Although Barbara Cusson's letter is full of bitter remarks about my analysis of house prices in the Ilkley area (they rose 28 per cent in the year to June), I imagine that we can agree on three commonsense principles:

That planning restrictions on the supply of new homes contributes to the increase in the sale prices of existing homes.

The formation of green belts in the late forties and sixties has prevented our lovely countryside from being covered with low-density housing.

That municipalities everywhere make incompetent managers of large-scale housing.

The challenge for Ilkley (and for all other parts of the Leeds' travel-to-work area) is to provide for the rapid growth in the numbers of households of only one or two people.

In Ilkley we face an even greater challenge because approaching 40 per cent of our people are retired. Many retired people are seeking somewhere to live that's easier to maintain than a big old house. Barbara Cussons suggests that these demographic changes are somehow the consequence of my philosophies. I'm flattered by that suggestion, but deny having such influence on other peoples' lives.

Everywhere in our country, there are strong trends toward smaller and older households, and for living in country areas that have good access to cities. The widespread failure of the planning process is that the interests of would-be home buyers are given much less priority than the clamour of a few local voters.

Some improvements are needed to the balance of these competing interests, and to divert the process from behaving as an insider cartel.

Ilkley's domestic property prices have risen by more than twice the national average for more than two years. The commonsense analysis is that those increases reflect the local planning restrictions on the supply of homes.

Whilst I welcome any additional supply of small, and therefore fewer expensive dwellings, I do not agree with Barbara Cussons that Government subsidies are an effective remedy for high prices.

Andrew Dundas

2 Pines Cottages,

Parish Ghyll Drive,

Ilkley.

Seven stalwarts

SIR, - May I through the comment columns of your newspaper heartily thank the seven stalwarts who so splendidly gave of their time to the Menston clear-up day this last Saturday.

I am particularly grateful to the redoubtable Lorelie Fox who stood in for me at the start of the morning's proceedings at very short notice getting things off to a flying start; ensuring that everyone who took part knew where they were going and what they were to do.

In spite of the fact that Bradford Council officials failed to supply the promised equipment for the job, for which they get the Golden Cow Pat Award, we still managed to scrape up sufficient bags to get a large amount of litter removed, which when I eventually came on to the scene I was able to take to the tip.

It was a pity that more people did not take part, but perhaps in that I was to blame as the publicity of the event went up too late and was thin on the ground.

But in my defence, this was the first time that I have organised something like this but I hope I have learned something from this and have taken many points on board, so next time things will be better and hopefully we shall get some of the youngsters and their mums and dads involved.

Anyhow, my very deep and sincere thanks once again to those who took part and helped to remove the blight of litter from the streets of our beloved Menston.

Chris Hartley

41 St Peter's Way,

Menston.

Fireworks rocket

SIR, - The bangs of fireworks woke me at 1am on Sunday, September 1. For me it meant a listless morning after, with a tired head and paracetamol. For others it will have meant the same or more. Not only others who like me need sound sleep, but those who are ill, young children who are frightened, indeed scared pet animals. The noise was heard across Ilkley.

It is an increasingly frequent late night noise. Would those who think of adding fireworks to their fun think also of what the noise does to others? Fireworks would be least troubling in the early evening, before 9pm or best of all on November 5 only.

David Hickson

31a St James Road,

Ilkley.

Praise for MP

SIR;- A very warm welcome is due to the words of Ann Cryer, our MP, after her meeting with the chairmen of the Airedale Primary Care Trust and the Airedale Hospital Trust.

What Mrs Cryer has done is to express straightforwardly and robustly a clear objective for the campaign against closing the Coronation Hospital.

If the services at Coronation Hospital are to be significantly increased and improved by relocation, then it must be relocation in full in Ilkley into a purpose-built premises when the premises are actually in place,

Edwin Schim

Victoria Grove,

Ilkley.

Dogs disgrace

SIR, - Dogs are on the loose again in Colbert Avenue and there are a lot of complaints. It's disgusting. Anyone allowing this to happen is wide open to a £100 fine - I understand this has happened. Clean up the streets, don't let Colbert get a bad name. We have a lot of new people coming on the road.

Mrs M Walker

10 Colbert Avenue,

Ilkley.