Time to protect police so they can do their job
THE attacks on brave police officers called to break up illegal raves could have been predicted.
The blame can be laid squarely with high-ranking police officers, police and crime commissioners and local mayors who have allowed protests and criminal damage to go unchecked.
It started with Extinction Rebellion, which brought cities to a standstill for weeks, damaged public and private property and created misery for thousands trying to go about their business.
We now have the Black Lives Matter movement, which is a noble cause, but again many protests have gone unchecked. The Far Right has got involved and the situation is spiralling out of control.
To all those in power who have done nothing to manage these situations effectively, get a grip and ensure the police are allowed to uphold the law.
D. M. BOON, Newbiggin-by-the-Sea, Northumberland.
Young risk takers
WITH the good weather we’ve been having, it’s clear that increasing numbers of people have had enough of the restrictions, as witnessed by the crowds at beaches.
It is mainly the younger generation who have abandoned lockdown. As statistics show that only a tiny number of under-45s have died of Covid-19, these people have decided they are at low risk.
And I suggest they are correct in this assumption. So why not let everyone under the age of 45 without underlying health issues go back to school and work, and so build up herd immunity.
The only thing they would have to agree to do is refrain from seeing elderly parents, grandparents and friends for a further month or two, as this is the group who are significantly more at risk.
Yes, this is hard on older people, but once the guidelines are widely ignored we can expect a second wave of Covid-19 infections.
The idea of bubbles to allow the elderly to see, hug and stay over with their grandchildren is where the Government, albeit with the right intentions, has got it wrong because this will raise the risk for the vulnerable.
BOB ELLIOTT, Stafford.
I WAS horrified, but not surprised, at the photo of thousands on Bournemouth beach (Mail).
How many were parents who are frightened to send their children back to school in controlled conditions, yet will risk taking them to a beach to sit within inches of strangers?
The beach-goers will be the first to complain when we get a second wave of the virus.
EILEEN GARNER, Oldham, Gtr Manchester.
What common sense?
JUDGING by the photos of sunseekers jam-packed on beaches, I would suggest the Government gives up on trying to ensure the nation stays safe and well.
It appears a huge percentage are too stupid to understand the concerns. Get them back to work by reducing furlough payments and ensure children go back to school in the hope they may learn the common sense that appears to have bypassed their parents.
Name and address supplied. IMAGINE another lockdown, but longer and harder than the last. Imagine queuing outside the supermarket in the middle of winter. Imagine children not able to go to school for another year. Imagine millions unemployed. Imagine loved ones dying needlessly. You can make it happen. ALAN SHARPE, Melton Mowbray, Leics.
Carriage of fools
I TRAVELLED by train to London last week for a hospital appointment, returning during rush hour.
I thought the wearing of masks was mandatory, but less than half of passengers were doing so. Many of those who did have masks kept taking them off to talk on their phone or to a companion.
There were no ticket inspectors to check tickets or whether masks were being worn. A second wave of Covid-19? I guarantee it.
SUSAN RUST, Borough Green, Kent,
Stuck on hard shoulder
IT’S not just theatres that have been forgotten in the easing of lockdown (Mail). As coach operators, we have had no income since March, but still have to pay council tax, utility bills, phone and insurance. With what will we pay a percentage of our employees’ wages?
We’ve been given no official help and haven’t been told when we can run coach trips again. TRACY WILSON, Nuneaton, Warks.
Care homes scandal
I AGREE we need an official investigation into the care homes scandal (Letters).
Ten days ago, my mother was discharged from the local hospital to a coronavirus-free care home. Unbelievably, the home was told it would be notified later if she was Covid-19 positive. It was given the all clear two days later.
How can this be allowed after everything that has happened? STEVE CATTERALL,
Blackburn, Lancs.
Britain on the up
THE IMF economic forecast has revealed Spain, Italy and France will suffer a worse financial slump than Britain.
This shows how right we were to get Brexit done. With our newfound freedom to forge trade agreements around the world, we should also recover much faster. SHIELA PECZENIK,
Andover, Hants.
Sweet nothings
I OVERHEARD two boys of junior school age talking. One said to the other: ‘My mum says it’s not safe for us to go back to school.’
The other replied: ‘ Is that because of this virus thing?’ ‘Think so,’ said the first. Where did this conversation take place? In front of me in a supermarket confectionery aisle. They were walking towards me blissfully unaware of the one- way system they were contravening.
This was about 7pm and from the rest of their conversation it would seem their parents had given them £2 each to go to the shop on their own for chocolate.
It’s good to know their parents take an interest in their safety RICHARD WITTERING,
Milton Keynes, Bucks.
Message from above
HOW heart- warming to read about the woman who saw her late dog’s face in the clouds (Mail).
I had a similar experience on the day of my Mum’s funeral. She always used to doodle her face in the margins of newspapers or magazines and on paper napkins.
I glanced out of the window and there it was: Mum’s lovely face in the clouds, exactly how she used to draw it. For me, it was proof there is life after we pass on.
MADELINE BATES, Southport, Merseyside.
DUE to a production error, the wrong date for the outbreak of the Korean War appeared on the letters pages. It started 70 years ago on June 25, 1950.