Letters to the Editor

I suspect that on their inflated wages and egos, they quickly forgot their "roots".

What a pity they can't perhaps follow the example of our own Sir Ken Morrison, now apparently richer than the Queen.

Last week, I was in Victoria Superstore, and there he was - helping out, picking up litter on the floor and then taking his place in the caf queue for his tea and bun.

Here is someone who has not forgotten his humble roots and through sheer hard work has built up a business supporting thousands of workers throughout the country.

At the same time he earns respect because, for all his millions, he is still prepared to do a day's work and not become some tax-exile, or assume "superstar" status.

Perhaps some football managers might consider awarding their "star" players a few days insight into the real world by letting them do some shifts at Morrisons.

I'm sure Sir Ken will be only too happy to show them how it's done!

John P Townsend, Heaton Park Drive, Bradford 9.

SIR - As a council-house tenant, I went to a very good meeting at a local church hall, but since then we have had no amount of literature about what it will mean to be taken over by a housing trust group: that all repairs will be done at once and the rents will be kept at a reasonable rate for the first five years.

A week last Monday, a very large folder arrived through my door, and on Tuesday of last week came a video to watch. I understand every council tenant has received this, though not everyone has a machine to play it on. To me this was a pure waste of money.

Who is paying for all this? Is it the council taxpayers? No doubt the Council don't want the property and can't afford to keep up with it. If they had done their job from day one, things would not be in the state they are now.

Mary Robinson, Cedar Street, Crossflatts, Bingley.

SIR - We hear a lot of bad publicity regarding the Health Service. But just before the New Year my mother had to be taken into hospital urgently for treatment for a gastric ulcer.

I telephoned for an ambulance and within five minutes they came. The ambulance medics were fantastic. They soon reassured my mum before they took her into hospital.

When she arrived at the A&E department, the service my mum received was first class.

After treatment she was admitted to Ward 23 and again her treatment was first class. After a short spell in hospital she was allowed home.

I would like to say thank you to all people involved at the BRI for the treatment my mum received.

George A Fletcher, Harbour Road, Wibsey.

SIR - Your pro-euro correspondents (January 7) seem to have been listening to too many Europhile arguments. In particular they make the (deliberate?) mistake of confusing a single currency with a single economy.

There are obvious advantages to a common currency but John Major's plan for such a currency without economic union was rejected. The continental politicians are happy to announce that they want full economic union.

There is no need to speculate as to the problems which may arise from the "one size fits all" philosophy which results.

When Britain was forced out of the forerunner, the ERM, many lost their jobs, their homes or their life savings.

On my many trips to France, I am saddened to see a similar story - unemployment two to three times our own, and a stagnant economy.

At the end of the day, it is a fairly simple matter; British control of the British economy in British interests has obvious advantages, and we should give up this control only if we have very compelling reasons to do so.

Has anyone heard any such reasons?

Tom Johnstone, Barraclough Buildings, Greengates.

SIR - Thanks are extended to everyone listed below who helped to make our pre-Christmas "Neighbourhood Morning" such an enjoyable and successful event:

Scouts for collecting litter; children and staff at Southmere Primary School for all their enthusiasm in the "Keep Great Horton Tidy" poster competition; the Co-op for their free mince and apple pies; Sydney the florist for the use of a trimmed Christmas tree; carol singers from St John's and Great Horton Methodist churches; donation of tea and coffee for all the helpers; Gilda (landlady at The Royal pub) for use of space to serve the refreshments; shops which participated in a Christmas window-dressing competition; finally to the Lord Mayor for his attendance and interest in our group's activities.

A collection for the Lord Mayor's Appeal raised £188.33.

We are already working on arrangements for our next Christmas event. We hope more will become involved.

Great Horton Action Group (working to put the Great back in to Great Horton), c/o HNP, 19-22 Sunbridge Road, Bradford 1.

SIR - Alec Suchi makes some good points in his letter of January 16. Admittedly, there is a plethora of self-evident flaws and contradictions in Christianity, but it does not follow that "from this it can be seen that religions...are the products of tradition".

The original teachings of Jesus, indeed of all the prophets, enjoined virtue and forbade evil-doing. These of course are noble and praiseworthy precepts and do not come from 'tradition' but from Divine Word.

The present face of Christianity was shaped by two predominant factors: firstly, Paulinian doctrine (St Paul never met Jesus nor was he well acquainted with any of his close disciples!); secondly, the four Gospels, which were (putatively) written by men who not only didn't know Jesus but who lived a long time after he had died.

Add to this the fact that there is no original 'Biblical' text and the fact that the many versions in circulation have inevitably lost a great deal in translation from Hebrew, Greek and Latin, and one can explain why there are so many empty churches!

Islam, by contrast, has its original, undiluted text, the Koran - an unadulterated doctrine: hence the burgeoning conversion rate.

Michael Best, Clarke Street, Calverley.

SIR - M Connor writes (Letters, January 15) that Cain married his own sister, but that God gave the thumbs-up to their incestuous shenanigans because they resulted in a brood of superkids who subsequently lived for hundreds of years.

Up until now, I've always considered the inspired lunacy of "Alice Adventures in Wonderland" to be the most enjoyable daft thing I've ever read. But then along comes this letter...

Peter Wilson, Thornhill Grove, Calverley.