Letters to the Editor

SIR, - Your correspondent, Jane Butterworth's assertion that in rural communities fireworks are let off to celebrate almost any event is somewhat preposterous.(Gazette, October 17).)

I was born in Slingsby, Ryedale, in 1933, and my wife was born in Timble, Washburndale in 1934. We have lived in semi rural communities in Airedale, Calderdale and Ribblesdale and for the past 40 or so years in Wharfedale.

We have never come across this habit of letting off fireworks willy- nilly until recently. It has begun to happen in the Ilkley area over the past few years, and predominantly in what may be described as the more affluent areas of Middleton, Grove Road and Panorama.

Our experience has been that families have had to save up to buy a few fireworks for bonfire night or have made the effort to take their children to organised displays.When our children were growing up, and we lived in a place in Ilkley, with space, we actually held very successful firework parties for friends and relatives on Bonfire night.

I find the indiscriminate setting off of the aerial bombs and similar explosive devices late at night extremely annoying and disturbing. I lived through the 1939-45 war and spent many hours in our air raid shelter. We lived close to a Royal Ordnance Factory that Hitler did not approve of.

I later served in the Royal Navy as a gunlayer, spending weeks at a time with the sound of gunfire in my ears, during the Korean War. The people who carry out these activities, are selfish and totally inconsiderate of the needs of their neighbours.

Having seen the price tags on some of the 'fireworks' on offer I would venture that they also have more money than sense. As I write the 'Lions' are having their annual charity fireworks display. At least it is early evening. I would be more likely to support that if it were on Bonfire night.

It has been going a long time and is for a good cause, but has set a poor precedent. Now, in addition to some of the other epithets which have been directed at me, perhaps 'killjoy' will be added.

Victor M Bean

112 Skipton Road,

Ilkley.

Distressing noise

SIR, - I resisted the temptation to write to you about the proposed firework ban, but after reading Jane Butterworth's letter (Gazette, Oct 17) I felt I had to respond on behalf of all the aloof, pretentious killjoys of Ilkley! I have three points for Ms Butterworth's consideration.

1. Fireworks have become increasingly noisy over recent years. Those called Air Bombs are so called because that is exactly what they sound like. My mother lived and worked in London during the Blitz and still finds loud bangs upsetting.

She doesn't need to re-live that part of her life. People of her generation sacrificed their youth so that we can enjoy our privileged lifestyle today and they deserve some peace in their later years, as well as our respect.

2 Pet owners are rightly advised to keep their pets indoors on bonfire night but how on earth are we supposed to do this when fireworks are potentially set off 365 days a year? The Guy Fawkes celebration is already an extended period of time with 'official' bonfires taking place as early as mid-October. Every year, much loved pets go missing or are involved in road accidents after being panicked by fireworks.

3. 'All year round' fireworks is another step towards nothing being 'special' any more - hot cross buns and Easter eggs in January, Christmas cards in the shops in August, fireworks every month of the year.

Let's keep November 5 as something special. You can boycott noisy fireworks and still enjoy a lovely display. We had a bonfire party when we first moved here and I discovered what thoughtful neighbours we had when they contributed non-banging fireworks because they knew we had animals.

Amazingly, it is possible to enjoy yourself without distressing others.

Heather Parry

17 Westwood Rise,

Ilkley.

Shop concern

SIR, - It was with great shock, sadness and also with not a little shame, that I received the news yesterday that our last butcher's shop in Menston is in very grave danger of closing its door for the very last time, simply for the reason of lack of use by local residents.

I sadly include myself in this unfortunate affair, for though I did patronise the shop on a weekly basis, usually on a Thursday evening after my crossing patrol duty at the school, my orders were always meagre.

As I rapidly approach the countdown to my three score years I can safety say that I well remember the time when our community had a fair share of shops and local businesses which made it virtually self-sufficient. We had no less than three butcher's shops, two fish and chip shops, three newsagencies and two splendid grocery stores. In Colley's Emporium, which stood where Glendinning's is today, plus Dyson's shop, which still exists in part.

We also had Cadema Bakery, a hairdressers and a haberdashery amongst many others, and all were fully capable of catering for the needs of the average family in Menston.

One only went into town when one wished to purchase that extra special something that could only be obtained at those establishments such as Busbys or Brown and Muffs in Bradford. However, that was 50 years ago and things move on. Our village has far fewer shops today and now we face the fact that our last butcher's shop is under threat of closure.

Barry Jackson has served the burghers of Menston faithfully and well for I would guess more years than he or I might care to remember, and I can recall when any visits to his premises would need to involve a bit of a queue.

Nowadays when I go I can nearly always guarantee that I shall walk straight in and up to the counter and obtain my necessaries immediately without waiting whilst Mrs So and So seems to gather in or so it appears half the stock as part of her normal shopping.

Barry has always been a cheery soul though and however busy he may have been in the past he was always ready to lend a friendly ear for any sort of a good old natter. As well as a fine line in meats, Barry was also an important outlet for the Wensleydale Creamery at Hawes, with its superb tradition in Dales Farmhouses cheeses, which the legendary Kit Calvert laboured so long to save in the face of Ministry bureaucracy. If this last of our butchers has to go a little corner of Menston will never be the same again.

It behoves us all to support our small local shops and businesses whenever we can. Not only are they an important part of the local economy but they are also places to meet and greet one another. Remember the local shopkeeper is your mate in a way supermarket staff never can be, however personally polite they are.

The small shop is the aorta of the living heart of any community and whilst it is easy to be seduced by the bright lights of the supermarket down the road, as we all are at some time or other, we owe it to all such traders as Barry Jackson to maintain a place in our hearts and minds for them because once they are gone our community is just another sterile housing estate.

C S Hartley

41 St Peter's Way,

Menston.

Parish balance

SIR, - Now that the people of Burley have established their legal claim to have their own parish council, it's time we thought about how the remaining Ilkley parish should be organised.

It remains open for the people of Menston to stay within Ilkley parish even though Burley and two green belts would separate it from Ilkley.

Less bizarre options include applying for their own parish or simply abandoning such status, as is the choice of most communities in our nation.

Within Ilkley itself, we face an issue of a quite different sort: how do we avoid the pitfalls of a 'one party state'?

As some of your readers may be aware, the effects of the first-past-the-post selection of parish councillors is that all 12 of Ilkley's own parish councillors represent the Conservative Party.

That used not to matter much as they took no responsibilities. But times have changed and now taxes are levied.

The tax gathered by the prospective all-Conservative council is not spent directly and may continue to be allocated to local bodies at the discretion of those councillors. That is more local power than we trust our MPs with.

Stripped of the non-Conservative councillors elected in Burley and

Menston, there may be a tendency for cash disbursements to favour bodies whose policies please the Ilkley Conservatives. And to reduce or decline grants to those who are out of favour with Conservatives.

With £24,000 a year to spend within Ilkley, our parish would be able to buy a lot of influence and acquiescence, without independent scrutiny of the process. This is the sort of temptation most democrats are anxious to avoid.

I suspect that many Conservatives may find that power unnerving, too.

A solution to this issue is feasible. All electors could be asked to select whichever of 12 councillors they prefer from a whole Parish List, and instead of the narrower choice of three in each of four separate areas.

Offered a much broader selection, we could expect the shrewd Ilkley electorate to achieve a more balanced representation than the current exclusivity.

Andrew Dundas

2 Pines Cottages,

Parish Ghyll Drive,

Ilkley.