Letters to the Editor

As the Executive Member responsible for markets, I have no intention of "flattening", "selling off" or "threatening" Keighley Market. It is true that the Council has been in discussions about a suggested redevelopment but we will not be replacing, as your report claimed, Keighley Market with a supermarket.

Any redevelopment must be acceptable to the traders at Keighley Market. That means protecting these traders' current levels of custom plus avoiding any interruption or serious disruption to the market's operation. In addition, any development will be subject to approval by the Council's Executive Committee and to permission from the Keighley Planning Panel.

For ten years the district's markets were appallingly treated. No investment was made in facilities, improvement or development.

Since taking over responsibility, I have overseen the commitment of a significant investment in redeveloping John Street market and in St James' Wholesale Market. I am looking to get investment into Keighley Market but not an investment that may jeopardise the 80-plus businesses in that market or the hundreds of jobs it provides for local people.

I will not support any proposal that puts the interests of one large business ahead of that of 80 small ones.

Councillor Simon Cooke, Chellow Terrace, Bradford 9.

SIR - I am writing to thank you for choosing me as a winner in the competition for a two-night break in Dublin.

My husband and I had a wonderful time in Dublin and the hotel was brilliant. Everything was first class. Thank you once again.

J Walsh, Glenside Road, Shipley.

SIR - I was horrified to read there are an estimated ten million rats living in the sewers under our city. Even more depressing was the attitude of a Council spokesman who said that in fact there were "only" five million rats under the city and that Bradford was no different from any other large city.

Then another Council spokesman, speaking about the upsurge of dog faeces in and around the city, proudly told us that "Since the bye-laws came into force three years ago, 350 tickets had been issued and TEN people had been successfully prosecuted for not paying their fines." The city coffers must be bulging!

What value to we get from these agencies? What exactly do they do with our money? Why don't we have more Environmental Health Officers checking on fast-food outlets, making sure they dispose of used fat and other commodities to prevent rats benefiting? Where are the dog wardens we never see?

If they came into this area, they could issue ten tickets an hour, not one every three days.

D Higson, Cleckheaton Road, Low Moor.

SIR - Having read the letter in the T&A on January 26, "Copy the Poles", I must agree strongly with what T Rushworth said. I know quite a lot of Polish people and I find they are very hard-working, pleasant folks.

I live in Queensbury, and the place is appalling, with litter everywhere. On January 14, the paper shop had the window smashed, as did three telephone boxes and the bus shelter in South Hill.

This must be the fourth or fifth time for the telephone boxes and second for the shop.

I think if we applied the sort of punishments as they do in Poland, it could easily save us money.

L Evans, Norcroft, Ambler Thorn, Queensbury.

SIR - I noticed the report about rubbish accumulating in Girlington (T&A, January 31).

While not condoning the dumping of carpets, furniture, etc., I am not surprised by it. We have had items waiting here since early December, despite three requests for the council to collect it.

I suppose somebody will say "We have checked our system and can find no trace of this request".

It's little wonder that people just dump the furniture themselves.

Michael Murphy, Halifax Road, Keighley.

SIR - Is there a dirtier set of citizens in Britain than the present citizens of Bradford? European City of Culture? Saltaire a World Heritage Centre? Don't make me laugh.

Iain Morris, Caroline Street, Saltaire.

SIR -While agreeing wholeheartedly with Mike Priestley's plea for the currently elderly to enjoy due recognition and respect for their wartime service and sacrifices ("Who's Counting", January 30), I must take issue with his classic statistical error.

In stating of bombing missions that "With every tour that ended safely, the odds became even more alarming" he is committing the common error of assuming that, for example, if a coin is tossed ten times and always lands "tails", the odds on an eleventh toss are therefore strongly in favour of "heads".

This is, of course, statistical nonsense: the odds are exactly even for each toss of the coin, regardless of previous results. Similarly, the odds for each bombing mission were exactly the same, albeit frighteningly grim when viewed from our safe and comfortable 2001 perspective.

So, if Mike would ever like to gamble some of his ever-so-modest salary on a little coin-tossing game, I will happily act as his bookie !

In the meantime, Mike, keep up the campaign to gain due recognition for those remaining "few" to whom we, the many, owe so much.

Graeme Hoyle, Kirkbourne Grove, Baildon.

SIR - Those who want to sell out the council tenants don't speak for me or the vast majority of council tenants. They only speak for a very few who attended their meetings.

There are quite a few questions that need to be answered by the Council before tenants vote.

Who will choose the board? Will it be by postal ballot so every tenant has a vote, or by a few who attend the meetings?

Will the board be paid or will it be on a voluntary basis (and that includes councillors)?

Who will pay for the independent representatives on the board, for they will come at a very high price?

Who will negotiate and agree any pay awards to council staff who are transferred over?

Could the Council say how much it cost ratepayers to employ the independent housing consultants HACAS?

B Bryar, Central Avenue, Shipley.

SIR - The Council's recent action to tackle the problem of unadopted roads (T&A, January 30) is both welcome and long overdue.

I have been campaigning to raise awareness of this issue over the past few months, and the Council's latest statement demonstrates that the message is finally getting across.

However, Bradford Council estimates that there are over 3,000 unadopted roads in the borough. Nobody can imagine that council budgets are going to be able to surface even a small number of them. There will have to be Government help if we are to make even a start on cleaning up the dirt tracks.

Unfortunately, there is little sign that the Government is getting the message. The thousands of residents of unadopted roads in Bradford South have, at present, little hope that their problems will be given the consideration that they deserve.

Graeme Tennyson (Conservative Prospective Parliamentary Candidate for Bradford South), Otley Road, Shipley.