Time to revolt over state of the nation

Five stories in last week’s Gazette have a common root be it the amalgamation of four East Kent Local Authorities, the downgrading of the K&C, the plight of the homeless, the closure of museums and the escalation of business rates: the death by a thousand cuts of local government funding and expenditure on public services.

Decision-makers have been brainwashed into thinking it has to be this way. But it doesn’t. Seventy years ago bombing during the Second World War was indiscriminate: we were all in it together. Yet visionaries were planning the NHS, the Welfare State, public infrastructure projects, education and decent housing for all. Indeed you couldn’t get a licence to build a private house until the 1950s because the rebuilding of the country had to come first.

Now, we are immeasurably richer yet central government is divesting its responsibility for meeting the everyday needs of its people: the private sector steps in where profit can be made but the misery of the poor and quality of the public realm can be discounted. This was epitomised by an incident last weekend. Cuts to Serco’s budget locally led to a mass litter pick.

A civic minded soul reached for a polythene bag hanging from a tree. Suddenly a rough sleeper appeared to reclaim his worldly goods. Those who witnessed this felt embarrassed and ashamed. There is something rotten in the state of Britain.

How about a Peasant’s Revolt? Dr Wendy Le-las Fleets Lane, Tyler Hill

Driving through Kent this weekend was akin to driving through the slums of Egypt or India so thick was the carpet of litter that festoons our major highways, mile after mile of rubbish tossed from cars and lorries to lay festering on our once green and pleasant hedgerows and verges.

Perhaps Kent County Council is leaving the mess untouched to demonstrate to us how the government cuts are affecting the services that they are charged to provide.

It must be much easier than removing some of the many employees earning well over £2,000 or £3,000 per week.

It is all well and good having highly paid managers if they have to troops to manage, if not, they are no more than a complete and utter waste of time and money.

Our KCC should sort this mess out or move aside and let fresh blood take over. James Darcey Preston Lane, Canterbury

However, Sir Julian appears to have a rather short-term memory problem. He says that the Secretary of State should have given prior approval for this work.

We would like to remind him that it was his coalition government, without Parliamentary approval, that allowed major spending on the renewal of the Trident nuclear weapons system to proceed without even a debate in parliament.

Hundreds of millions were spent in upgrading the Burghfield nuclear weapons facility plus equally large amounts being allocated to Trident submarine development.

Important though the environmental and planning considerations of the pylons are, we would suggest that the economic and human repercussions of nuclear weapons development are on a rather different scale. Geoff Meaden, Kent area CND. Selling Road, Old Wives Lees, Canterbury

Unlike the previous cabinet who had made no provision when the EU referendum vote went against them, the National Grid cannot just ‘throw up its hands and walk away’ (Gazette, March 2).

It must ensure that the Nemo link will be connected to the main national grid network to guarantee our supply of electricity in the future.

So it is reasonable to do some investigative groundwork in preparation for whatever decision is signed off by the Secretary of State Andrea Leadsom, particularly if completion is to be early in 2019.

A lot of misinformation is being given out which may sway public opinion but this is hardly likely to affect the final