Letters, Wednesday, June 24, 2009
City should recruit through local firms
RECENTLY in your newspaper there have been numerous calls from One North East and Sunderland City Council encouraging people to source goods and services locally.
In a recent Sunday Times there was a recruitment advert for six positions with Sunderland council with a combined salary bill of circa 600,000. The recruitment process was being handled from guess where? – London!
A conservative level of fees for this exercise would be 100,000 to 150,000. Why could this contract not have been offered to a local North East-based consultancy?
My own company, Kelburn Recruitment, has recruited senior level executives for global market leaders for 30 years and, along with ourselves, there are three other local consultancies capable of recruiting at this level.
Certainly the fees would have gone a long way to protect jobs in the North East-based consultancies and I am sure local consultants would do a far better job of selling the benefits of working and living in the Sunderland area than a London account executive who has no experience of the area.
Perhaps the city council should practise what it preaches and One North East should be more vocal in ensuring public bodies allow local business to tender for these contracts.
Harry Chalmers,
Director,
Kelburn Recruitment
Resident of Washington in the City of Sunderland
It's a disgrace
I WRITE in reference to the recent letter "A disgrace for disabled people in our area".
As a supporter of the Changing Places campaign, I think it is a disgrace that Sunderland City Council doesn't provide public toilets that meet the needs of local people with severe disabilities and their carers.
People with profound and multiple learning disabilities need Changing Places toilets – with a hoist, changing bench and plenty of space. Without them carers are often forced to change their disabled loved-ones on dirty toilet floors.
Sunderland City Council has yet to install a Changing Places toilet. People with profound and multiple learning disabilities should have the same opportunities as everyone else. And carers have enough to contend with – let's not make their lives harder by denying them the right to basic public facilities.
I encourage readers to take action. Sign the online petition about this important issue at www.mencap.org.uk/changelives
Louise Withers,
Campsie Close
Treaty too far
PETER Mandleson's Euro credentials have once again been aired in the press. His latest comment "Britain should adopt the euro" has been followed closely by that of Kenneth Clark, who has saId that if Ireland ratifies the Lisbon Treaty later this year the Conservatives, if elected, will not reopen the debate or hold a referendum on it as they have promised.
Kenneth Clark, David Cameron's appointee, to "shadow" Peter Mandelson in the Commons seems to be in cahoots with Labour's business manager in their belief that Britain should become full members of the EU. Why he was ever invited to the Conservative front bench is a mystery, but more strange, he, a fervent Europhile has been allowed to make this statement when he promised not to embarrass the Conservatives.
Ever since the Lisbon Treaty was reworded, not changed as Gordon Brown would have us believe, the issue of the referendum has not been addressed since the PrimeMinister reneged on his promise to put the Treaty to the vote.
What will the Conservatives do if elected? They have said that they will honour their promise to hold a referendum. Now we are told by Tory grandee Clark, that this will not happen. David Cameron and William Hague say even if Ireland ratifies before the British Election, they will not let matters rest. Just what will that mean?
The British people, at least those who still consider their status as being British, will no doubt reflect on the impending absorption into a federal Europe and voice their opinion in the next election. All this will of course excite UKIP whose policies have always been that Britain should be a trading partner with Europe not a vassel region under a un-elected, bureaucratic, and as many believe a corrupt self-perpetuating monster state.
Councillor GE Howe,
Fulwell Ward
Change the people
GORDON Brown's response to the worst political and economic crisis for a generation is to change the voting system.
After 12 years of Blair/Brown destruction of our savings, record State and personal debt, a credit crunch, the destruction of the banking system, house repossessions and expenses and allowances corruption in Parliament the Prime Minister now tells it is all our fault.
We did not vote the proper way. He has a whole lot of other ways to vote so we will doubtless end up voting for more of him!
He has this idea from his eurofanatic friends in Europe.
Did people notice how, despite a massive defeat for the Labout Party, the changes inside the European Parliament have not been very great? That's what corrupt political establishments want. No matter how catastrophic they are, they don't lose power.
We don't need new voting systems, we need new people to vote for. How about some Democrats?
Rodney Atkinson,
Meadowfield Road,
Stocksfield
Young boozers threw bottle at my window
ABOUT your booze debate. I would welcome any debate that is going to change the way the youths of today are handling the booze.
They start very early in the morning and are drinking all day, causing trouble for God knows who. They don't care.
On May 12, my bay window was smashed with a vokda bottle at about 6pm while I was watching the evening news.
I was showered with glass, had a few cuts here and there but it was the shock that was the worst.
My whole family had to come to my aid and help with the clear-up after the police had gone. They caught the boy who did it but I don't even know him, so why me?
Well, he came to me two weeks later and apologised to me. But he was drunk again and this was early evening. So he'd been drunk all and every day since – and long before, probably.
Two weeks later, after the shock of it, I developed shingles, brought on by my shock. I had four ulcers in my eye and numerous scabby blisters on my face and head. Treatment with doctors and the Eye Infirmary have just about got me sorted.
It could have been worse, I could have had another heart attack. Then where would I have been?
Something has to be done with these boozy youths before someone dies of their stupidity in drink.
Mrs V Eastick,
Falkland Road,
Sunderland
Impartial tribunal
YOUR article High Courts boost for Sunderland parking campaigner by Jane O'Neill on Tuesday, June 16 ,does not represent the full account of Mr Herron's recent court case.
Mr Herron was given permission to pursue his argument about Sunderland city centre Control Parking Zone.
However, Mr Justice Keith refused Mr Herron permission to pursue the argument that the Traffic Penalty Tribunal, formerly the National Parking Adjudication Service, was not independent and impartial, saying that he was entirely satisfied that his claim was not arguable.
It would be disappointing if readers were to be left with the misleading impression that motorists should not appeal against a the parking ticket when they believe there are grounds for doing so, when in fact 60 per cent of motorists who take an appeal to the tribunal win their case.
Caroline Sheppard,
Chief Adjudicator
My second home
I READ with interest about MPs allowances and expenses. Being retired I spend a large part of my life in an allotment garden. A second home in the form of a garden maintains married bliss.
The activity involves quite a lot of lunches out, cheese sandwiches in the greenhouse during the day and frequent evening meetings in the local club to discuss the various merits of liquid fertiliser and horse manure in the cultivation of show leeks and the flowers. The latter being a prerequisite of the issue of any pass needed to attend club meetings.
While I cannot expect allowances similar to an MP for running a second home, a rough calculation would suggest that if the Government returns all the taxes I have paid over the last ten years I might be able to claim equality under the law with many MPs.
N Bohill,
Staveley Road,
Sunderland
SWAN'S LAMENT
WE live by the beautiful lakeside
In the Silksworth Country Park
There's ample fresh food and water
But we're beside a predatory walk.
No reeds or bushes for protection
From some crass mindless louts
Who wickedly abuse us at leisure
When there is no other folk about.
Like those with dogs who find joy
In harassing us and our precious young
Also those cursed cowboys with airguns
Who kill swans and ducks for fun.
What chance do we have here
Won't some naturalists notice our plight
How about an island or two to live on
Like the Mowbray Park has
To keep us safe at night.
Not everyone is stupid and mindless
Most people are very kind
Especially those with children who feed us
And dog owners with sensible minds.
If you were a swan like me
Wouldn't you like a good nesting place
Well come on Mr and Mrs Public
I beg of you, make our environment safe.
My eggs, there are four
Are balanced precariously on a rocky edge
No shelter of protection
Homeless, my expected signets may be dead.
It's never too late to help us
So if you see us being abused
Please report it to the RSPCA
And support our point of view.
Cec Robertson
Doxford Park,
Sunderland
It's 'Sir' to you
I WAS chatting to my seamstress, Bella Bronson as she stitched another Motorhead patch on my bike jacket. "I see Elton John lent his house for Jade's wedding, which was kind of him" this elicited from Bella a huge whack! "Ow!"
"Have some respect! It's Sir Elton John."
I thought about this revelation while the throbbing of my left ear subsided. What's he done to deserve a knighthood, as I searched the old grey stuff for clues to his elevation. If it wasn't for Marc Bolan inviting him onstage at Top of the Pops he would still be just a session pianist.
So I thought about his career and the only thing of note I could remember was a number 1 with Kiki Dee in the 70s. Then it hit me. He wrote that song Candle in the Wind for Princess Diana's funeral. So there we have it, to receive a knighthood you just have to write a nice song for someone famous and popular.
Anybody for Sweet Dreams in Heaven Jade Goody? ...
Csar Kazum
Sunderland
THANKS to the Echo for publishing details of the expenses of our two MPs. Now I understand why Bill Etherington always claimed more than Chris Mullin.
Bill, no doubt, entered politics to do good and we can all feel that we have been done, but good.
B McGill,
South Bents,
Sunderland
IN 2004 the UK contributed 9billion to the EU. We received in return 4billion plus a rebate of 3billion. Those rebates were stopped afterwards by Tony Blair. That year Southern Ireland was bribed to join the Euro, they paid to EU 700million and received 1.6billion in return.
In June 13, 2008 Southern Ireland rejected the Lisbon Treaty. There is talk that Ireland will say yes to the Lisbon Treaty referendum in October. What will be the ransom money this time?
Marjorie Matthews,
Aiskell Street,
Millfield,
Sunderland
INDECENT images in emails from estate agents? Has anyone experienced this? If so please contact me we are on a mission to get this sorted- It is happening and not being dealt with appropriately- It happened to us and we were told they did not send it, it was a computer virus! There were also many images not just one. The Ombudsman has been made aware
Julieann
weekenny43@yahoo.com
ON behalf of the St Anthony's "1960 Girls" we would like to say a big thank-you to everyone at the Echo who helped to advertise our school reunion, which was held on Saturday, June 13. It was a great success. Past pupils came fom London, Nottingham, Yorkshire, Surrey and Cumbria to celebrate the occasion. We can't wait for our next get-together.
The 1960 Girls
I WAS disappointed to read Richard Ord's review (Echo, June 12), of the Oasis concert. I did not want to know about how much beer was consumed. At least Adam Jupp's review managed to capture the magic of the actual concert for those unfortunate few who did not manage to attend one of Sunderland's best-ever events.
F McKenna
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Friday 10 February 2012
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