Letters to the Editor

SIR, - We write as leaders of the Churches of Aireborough to express our deep concern at the threat posed by the British National Party in forthcoming elections.

Building on their recent gains of 17 council seats across the country (including most recently Heckmondwike in West Yorkshire) the BNP are working to increase their influence this year (June 2004) in both the European and local council elections.

They are fielding 400 candidates nationwide and 23 BNP candidates are standing for election in Leeds, including one in the new Otley and Yeadon ward.

We accept that such parties are entitled to operate within the democratic process. However, we believe it is vital that they do not become accepted as part of normal political life. We affirm that membership or any form of support for organisations such as the British National Party is incompatible with Christian discipleship.

As Christians, we deplore all attempts to divide our society on race and asylum issues. We seek to follow the example of Christ who calls us to love our neighbour as ourselves.

We resist and challenge the messages from the BNP against members of some faith communities and assert that all human beings are created equally in the image of God. We welcome and celebrate the contribution and example given by all people of faith to this multicultural area.

We urge people to exercise their right to vote and to vote only for candidates whose policies reflect a spirit of inclusive welcome.

Rev Graham Atherton

(St. Oswald's, Guiseley)

Rev Marcus Bull

(Trinity Church, Rawdon)

Mr Rob Fry

(New Life Community Church)

Rev Mark Godfrey

(Yeadon Methodist Church)

Mrs Gaynor Hammond

(Guiseley Baptist Church)

Rev Tony Jeffries

(Guiseley Methodist Church)

Rev Chris Morris

(St. Peter's, Rawdon)

Father Vincent O'Hara

(SS Peter and Paul Roman Catholic Church)

Rev Peter Sutcliffe

(St. Andrew's, Yeadon)

Rev Richard Walker

(St. John's, Yeadon)

Deacon Gwynneth Gostling

(Yeadon Methodist Church)

One theme

SIR, - It looks to me as though the three main political parties (Conservative, Labour and Liberal) are all fighting on the same theme this election.

Stop the BNP! Some little while back, Mr.Michael Howard went to Lancashire to tell the electorate what an awful lot the BNP were. This, to the people who had elected BNP candidates.

The electorate are good and sensible people so long as they vote for the 'right' people it seems. Mr. Howard should have been asking why people voted for BNP candidates.

My guess is that they have been let down so often by Labour and Conservative, that in desperation, they voted for extremists. Although I have no intention of ever voting BNP, I can understand this kind of 'protest vote'.

To all candidates I would say, listen to the people at all times. Not just in the days running up to the election.

John D Harrison.

128, Park Road,

Guiseley.

Riverside fear

SIR, -I am writing in response to the articles in 'The Wharfedale' on May 13, concerning the riverside development in Otley, and also your leader comment, 'Issues galore, but silence was deafening'.

At the public meeting held at the Civic Centre on March 23, the proposals for the River Corridor were presented by the planning consultants as a 'vision' of what might be considered; merely outline proposals which the residents of Otley could consider and either support, reject or amend, and put forward their own alternative ideas.

Despite serious and well informed concerns raised by several people regarding certain aspects of the proposals, it is now stated in last week's 'Wharfedale' that the consultation exercise concluded that 'its redevelopment, with a mixture of housing, hotels, businesses and cafes, would be the best thing for this town'.

Who has come to this conclusion and on what grounds?

Certainly not the people at the meeting, whose concerns about yet more cafes in the town, about environmental considerations and about building on the flood plain were not adequately answered.

Are these concerns to be ignored? Has the 'vision' now become a Master Plan without any real consultation about the ideas and visions that local people may have?

Most residents of Otley do 'care a fig' whether cafes, flats and hotels are built along the river. At the meeting I expressed fears regarding the proposals and made a counter proposal for an extension of the riverside park that met with applause and approval; a clear indication that local people would like the idea to be noted - and explored in more detail.

From what we read, conclusions have already been reached with no mention of possible park extensions or consideration of carefully designed visitor access to view the wild fowl lagoons, an area that really could be the 'jewel in the crown' of the Otley River Corridor, and a pleasure for generations to come.

Once developed, this beautiful stretch of the river will be lost for ever.

What is to be done? The people of Otley need to be fully consulted in a transparent process of consultation to ensure that our ideas are properly considered. Without these open processes, people feel powerless and, in the end, apathetic about the efficacy of the democratic process in the face of commercial and financial interests.

David Nunnerley

Landscape Architect,

Kylemore,

Billams Hill,

Otley.

Keep centre

SIR, - Please allow me, as chairman of Otley Disabled People's Advisory Group, to respond to your correspondent from last week, Mr Whelan, who is advocating a new Otley Civic Centre on the basis that the current one does not cater for disabled users.

I would certainly agree that our current centre is not well equipped to deal with the needs of disabled users - but there is absolutely no reason why it shouldn't be. He should take a look at two very good examples of older buildings in the town which have been sympathetically converted with the needs of disabled people in mind.

Namely the Methodist Church on Boroughgate and the recently opened Courthouse Project. Both of these buildings will have thrown up exactly the same sort of challenges that need to be addressed in the civic centre. The difference is that those in charge did not walk away.

What Mr Whelan should also take note of is that the Disability Discrimination Act (DDA) comes into force this year. Therefore a considerable amount of the expenditure will need to be spent on the existing centre anyway. This makes the decision to abandon this well loved building all the more baffling.

It is clear to all, apart from the nine councillors who support a move away, that a new build will cost considerably more than adapting and refurbishing the current civic centre. Mr Whelan can advocate a new civic centre with the comforting fact that he would not be paying for it - residents of Otley will though.

I'm pleased that Mr Whelan feels that he's been adequately consulted on the matter - it's a pity that the vast majority of people, including the key users of the centre, think that the so-called consultation either hasn't happened or is a total farce.

Coun Neville Birch

13 St Clair Road,

Otley.

Race issue

SIR, - In light of recent coverage on racism, immigration and related matters in the media and elsewhere, I thought it important to make your readers aware of the Yorkshire and Humber Assembly's position on the issue.

The Assembly, which represents the region's 22 local authorities, along with social, economic and environmental partners, has endorsed a request from our faith communities representatives to condemn all forms of racism.

Sajda Shah, from the Black, Minority and Ethic communities sector and Hilary Willmer, from the Churches Regional Commission, both spoke passionately at our recent meeting about celebrating our region's culture and diversity and the threat of those trying to divide our communities.

As the voice of the region, Assembly members were delighted to unanimously support the statement, particularly in light of the forthcoming elections at local and European level.

One of the driving forces behind Advancing Together, the region's strategic framework, is the need to provide a first class quality of life for everyone and be intolerant of discrimination.

That need extends to everyone living in Yorkshire and Humber and we must ensure the region continues to work together to tackle discrimination and challenge those who would seek to undermine those efforts.

Peter Box

Chairman,

Yorkshire and Humber

Assembly.

King Street,

Wakefield.

D-Day thought

SIR, - Very soon the 60th anniversary of D-Day will be upon us. Once again we will be able to honour that wonderful generation of men and women who swept ashore on the Normandy beaches and opened up the Second Front against Hitler's Germany.

However, perhaps we can spare a thought for their Soviet comrades who were performing equally epic feats on the Eastern front.

In July 1943 at Kursk in the Ukraine took place the greatest clash of armoured forces in history. It was the decisive land battle of the Second World War and saw armoured and aerial clashes on a ferocious scale.

The Germans gave way and never recovered from this battering. With the collapse of communism it has become fashionable to forget the role of the Soviet Union. But it was the Red Army who, in Winston Churchills words 'tore the guts out of the German war machine''.

John Hodgson

48 Capel Avenue,

Peacehaven,

E Sussex.

Event thanks

SIR, - May I through your newspaper thank all the people for supporting my final event, a night of music, food and dance. I would especially like to thank the artistes, Peter 'Machine Gun' Wallis, Centre Stage Academy of Performing Arts and the Above Average Weight Band, as well as Olive Cooper and all the other helpers on the night.

I feel that a special vote of thanks must go to Carol Bicker at Centre Stage Academy for all the hard work she and her team have put in over this mayoral year. Her entertainers have performed at the Otley Vintage Transport Extravaganza, the lighting of the Christmas lights, the Victorian Christmas concert and of course the night of music, food and dance.

The event raised more than £1, 200 for the Jacob Burnham Appeal and this has taken the total amount raised to around the halfway stage of £10,000.

On a different subject, I have been asked what has happened to the litter picks. The answer is that they may have been subjected to election expenses, so we have had to postpone them until after the June election. Then, once we have public liability insurance in place, we shall continue with cleaning up Otley.

Nigel Francis

6 Pearson's Buildings,

Otley.

So 'luverly'

SIR, - I saw The Grove and Rawdon Theatre Company's production of "My Fair Lady" recently and it really was as good a show as any professional production.

The whole company worked so hard to make it successful, not just centre stage, but behind the scenes as well.

I wish The Grove and Rawdon Theatre Company every success in the future and 'With a little bit of luck' they will go from strength to strength.

"Wouldn't that be luverly?"

Mrs M Gilks

Harrogate Road,

Yeadon.