Parents break their silence on tragedy

The cause of death has been established as diamorphine toxicity (overdose). Dr White put it there. Not intentionally, but by mistake. Hence no criminal proceedings are to be taken against him.

At no time have we questioned Dr White's compassion. However, when medical error results in death, no matter how highly regarded any doctor might be within the community, he or she must take responsibility for their lack of diligence.

If re-instated this doctor - like us - will have to live with the knowledge that Jill died needlessly.

He will continue to need support but we ask those supporters of Dr White to appreciate that we have lost our only child in the most tragic of circumstances.

The parents of Jill Griffiths,

Skipton.

Disappointed

SIR - I confess to being thoroughly disappointed by two of the responses to my letter (Craven Herald, April 27) on the Church and institutional religion.

I asked Mr Fidler to define what he meant by "tradition" and he has patently refused to do so. Therefore, we are still in the dark as to the nature of his remedy for the Rev Adrian Botwright's concern. Perhaps, Mr Fidler could also say specifically why Fred Pratt Green could possibly quarrel with the context in which I used the words of his hymn, a context which Mr Fidler also fails to note, marks a deep area of my own personal Anglican-Methodist experience?

The Church cannot address its failings unless people are specific about what those failings are. The critics must be equally specific about what to do about them if they want their advice to be considered seriously.

Such advice is of course, only worth taking if it springs from a real knowledge of what is really going on within the Church's walls. Otherwise, it is just plain hurtful to many devout Christian people who are not only genuinely trying to live out their faith in the world today but are trying also to help the Church's institutional life to come to terms with change.

Mr Clemence's letter for all its apparent gentleness is an attempt to side-track the issues into the grim, unyielding world of Biblical fundamentalism. In any case, I do think there could be a useful exchange here.

As a Christian, I do not worship as Mr Clemence apparently does, "Jehovah triune God", since Jehovah is a medieval guessword for the Hebrew YHVH which is but one name for God in the Old Testament. If Mr Clemence wants to know where I stand on the Bible, I suggest he reads my article in the current issue of Giggleswick Parish magazine.

Of the three, Mr Adams' letter and indeed, to a lesser extent, Mrs Taylor's the week before, interest me most, because they struggle, perhaps vaguely, to express the genuine frustration many people feel when the Church fails to answer the deepest spiritual needs of contemporary society.

I think it is probably these needs which others of your readers might wish to debate further. Perhaps in addition, Churches Together in Skipton might consider organising a conference at which we can debate, face to face, the important issues raised in this correspondence which the Craven Herald so courageously has published in its columns.

Kathleen Kinder,

Station Road, Giggleswick.

Form filling

sir - I have some comments to make about the recent Skipton Traffic Survey questionnaire sent out by North Yorkshire County Council regarding parking in Skipton.

What will happen when North Yorkshire County Council receive the completed forms?

It seems to me that form filling is not the way to find out how bad parking is around the Middletown area. Why doesn't someone from the council come to Skipton on a market day and a normal working day and have a look round the streets?

Cars are parking on junctions, which obstructs visibility in both directions for cars trying to emerge from the junction.

As for permit parking, why should householders have to pay to park outside their own homes? If more planning for car parks was to be considered when altering or building new offices, then surely people wouldn't have to park on the streets.

S Cracknell,

Devonshire Street,

Skipton.

A word of praise

SIR - Through inclement weather the sports correspondents, journalists and photographers bring us information on the local sporting scene.

They get plenty of criticism through their reports and very little praise. They have done an excellent job of reporting sporting events each week over the winter. From Bradford City and Burnley down to the grass roots of Craven sport.

The reporters have done a difficult job with so much bad weather in keeping the public up to date. Well done!

Allan Mason,

Jennygill Crescent,

Skipton.

Widows' miss out

SIR - I am sure that many of your readers will be unaware of a change to the widows' benefit which started from April 8.

Previously any widow, aged between 45 and 60, would receive a widow's pension until the retirement pension was paid, but now widows without dependant children will only get a widow's pension for one year.

So, in effect any husband dying at 65 or after could in theory leave a younger wife without a widow's pension for between one and 14 years.

No doubt this latest Euro-edict will put more money into Gordon Brown's coffers and I doubt whether much of their £62 million advertising expense has been used to publicise this benefit change.

Brian Rasche,

Westways, Draughton.

Honest workers

SIR - I followed with interest your "rugby disunion" episode. All your scribes and spokesmen are good mates of mine and all have done a good job for sport in general. However I still present a few contentious viewpoints.

Whilst applauding Michael Harrison's criticism regarding the abuse of public funding which had been specifically apportioned to nurture the grassroots of rugby union, the ensuing "hypocrisy" innuendo levelled at The Rugby League's director by Tony Simpson needs redressing.

Rugby league's millionaires changing codes today to become double millionaires in union are not to be compared with the honest, humble guys who came north for a century. A vast many of these players changed codes simply as a means of salvation from poverty and deplorable working conditions. Agents, flash cars etc, synonymous with today's top players were a million miles away.

One such RL legend of yesteryear, Alan Edwards, who lived and worked locally, lastly at the quarry, following a career with Salford, Bradford, Wales and Great Britain never even had a car.

Then there was that other pal from the valleys and similarly successful RL British Lion, "Ginger" Hughes, father of soccer star Emlyn. Ginger, well known at the local shows and sports, was also a familiar figure in Craven working with a tarmac gang.

Rugby union's handling of any public funding needs to be scrutinised, not least because that sport ha already had more than its fair share of the public cake. Indeed, when Sports Council handout figures were published throughout the 1960s and most of the 70s, I seem to remember that rugby union was far, far and away the biggest recipient, year in and year out, with the likes of soccer, athletics and cricket languishing way behind.

No harm done there, except that many amateur RL players were still banned from playing union for many clubs (albeit not all of them). If one dim happening plummeted below all others it was the case of the guy from Barrow jailed for murder who was banned form his prison rugby union team not for the appalling crime which sent him to prison but because he had formerly played amateur rugby league.

This of course refutes Fred Bullough's suggestion that the only ostracism occurred around the Thames.

Meanwhile Chris Westwood presented some excellent points but unfortunately allowed a touch of acrimonious passion to spill a bit too far. He might better reflect upon what he has actually received as a result of the 1895 split - a most beautiful game. Why, even three of William Webb Ellis's descendants all opted to play RL for Keighley.

Roger Ingham,

Aldersley Avenue, Skipton.

History lesson

SIR - In your update last week on the development at the Bond Lane site in Settle, including the provision of a new location for the primary school, it was stated that the school was "built around 1857".

Some time ago you published a letter from Mrs Audrey Bull of Greenfoot Barn in Upper Settle referring to the fact that the primary school had celebrated its centenary in 1956 and outlining some of its history.

From that letter and other documentation one learns that Greenfoot Barn had originally belonged to the Misses Dawson of Langcliffe Hall who, in 1849, allowed the barn to be used as an infants school.

In 1853 the local National School, which had been built in 1816 on what is now the Victoria Hall site in Kirkgate, moved to the site in Upper Settle on which a new school had recently been built by the Rev John Robinson. In return, he became owner of the Victoria Hall site (that same year, 1853, saw the opening of the Victoria Hall as a music hall, the occasion being marked by a concert given by the Settle Choral Society. The hall was subsequently gifted to the people of Settle in 1920).

In 1856 the national and infants school were amalgamated as a church school and this was the beginning of what is now the primary school.

Ian Smith,

Greenhead Lane,

Settle.

Bungled bids

SIR - Your report on the bungled bids for more crime cameras in Pendle exposed how incompetent the Labour-run Pendle council has become. The full facts will appall your readers even more...

Several times last June, July and August, (after seeing crime plots and proposed camera positions at the camera working group) I proposed that Pendle should bid immediately for a scheme covering Barnoldswick, Earby, Barrowford and Colne. I pointed out that the Government's criteria for the bidding round fitted local communities "like hand and glove" (Government was looking for small towns, rural areas etc).

However, Labour (and Conservative) councillors rejected my plea after Labour leader Azhar Ali requested more time to draw up plans, promising that bids would be submitted "by December". He said that there was "no urgency" as the bidding round was open-ended.

In September, the Home Office's new Regional Crime Director announced that there were millions of pounds for CCTV unspent. He pleaded for bids to be put in.

The Home Office then introduced a cut-off date, but by December's deadline, only Colne's bid for cameras was done. (Even that was sent after civil servants had finished work for Christmas - a special delivery, interrupting the civil servants Christmas party, had to be arranged).

Mere "statements of intent" were submitted for Barnoldswick, Barrowford and Earby.

Coun Ali said there was "more time" (until the end of April) to put in full bids.

Only in March, after several demands for consultation on the plans, did Coun Ali eventually arrange meetings to consider detailed schemes. (In West Craven's case, on March 8, embarrassed officials waited half-an-hour for Coun Ali to turn up, before eventually starting - and finishing - the meeting without him).

By then of course, Labour Ministers must have rejected the 'bids' - without even seeing them. On March 23, the Government Office wrote to say the schemes were dead. The letters added: "There are no further opportunities to apply for funding under the CCTV Initiative..."

Those letters arrived at the Town Hall on Monday March 26. As Leader of the administration, Coun Ali would have been told about their receipt. On Thursday (29th) the full Council met. It was Coun Ali's chance to announce the news... but he kept quiet.

Even eight days after the Town Hall knew of the decision (on April 3), councillors in West Craven - kept in the dark - were discussing the bids in the hope and expectation of success.

It is probably kind to call this a story of Council incompetence. The horrifying alternative is that the Labour Leader of Pendle Council embarked on a cynical exercise and led people up the garden path. I'll leave it to your readers to decide.

Coun David Whipp,

Bank Edge,

Lockfield Drive,

Barnoldswick.

History lesson

SIR - I paid a visit to The Dales and came across your paper. You seem like the ideal channel to express my concern at the growing dilapidation which seems to be rife.

The Dales are renowned for their dry stone walls but many are in a state of disrepair.

Driving through the beautiful countryside (foot and mouth restrictions making us wary of heading on to the footpaths) we were sad to see that in many parts an ugly wire fence had replaced what were lengthy stretches of immaculate walls.

Perhaps this has something to do with the much-documented foot and mouth crisis but I can't help wondering where it will all end.

James Forster,

Molescroft Drive,

Beverley.

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