This cancer centre is an outmoded concept

IN his open letter, Dr Ashley Roberts, Consultant Interventional Radiologist at Cardiff and Vale University Health Board, describes a stand-alone cancer centre such as the one proposed by Velindre as an ‘archaic model.’

21st century cancer care is linked to a larger, acute hospital – such as UHW – where all aspects of care are available on the same site.

Why therefore is Velindre proposing to spend £210m of public money on a concept that is outdated long before it is even built?

The proposed access road will cost a further £27m of public money – a jaw-droppingly disproportionate price tag for a civil engineering project of this scale.

Serious questions need to be asked of Velindre, and their insistence on pursuing a model that will not deliver the 21st century cancer services the people of south Wales deserve.

Their choice of action is even more perplexing given that UHW has offered them space within their forthcoming rebuild.

It’s high time the Welsh Government intervened.

Nerys Lloyd-Pierce

Chair, Cardiff Civic Society

Putting Covid into perspective

SOME observations from the last 20 weeks. Covid-19 perspectives. Who would have thought that:

1 A directional floor arrow could be so problematical.

2 Betsi Cadwaladr is now a nightly news item.

3 One could walk so far in one hour.

4 Shopping on line could prove so exciting. 5 Foreign holidays are not a human right.

6 Hancock’s Half-Hour (early evening press conference) is in line for a TV award.

7 Deliberation becomes a leadership quality.

8 Sterility is a football match without supporters. 9 Lockdown pushes Brexit into the middle pages.

10 A moral compass is a only a pre-requisite for cabinet members going for a walk.

11 The Cominic Dummings fashion brand fails to woo the public.

12 BJ has given the Chinese Takeaway a different meaning.

13 Fish and chips is now a Friday night treat.

14 The downside of face masks are protruding ears.

15 A tank full of petrol would last three months.

16 A hug is the a gold standard of affection.

17 The handshake might be gone for ever.

18 Expert opinion is delivered in such absolute terms.

19 Any obesity initiative could ignore the fact that overweight people do watch television after the nine o’clock threshold.

20 Delivery vans are the new social contact.

21 Early morning bird-song is so melodic.

22 A five mile drive has such elastic properties.

23 A 2 metre distance is such a variable.

24 Toilet paper eventually makes it onto the shopping list.

25 Six hangers are adequate for the current wardrobe.

26 A sneeze into your sleeve is the measure of good practice.

27 A new vaccine tops the Christmas wish-list.

28 Hand sanitisers are more popular than Aftershave or Eau de Cologne.

29 Village policemen queueing outside Greggs is indicative of normality. 30 Cominic Dummings’s 30 mile drive is unlikely to be endorsed as a standard eye test by the DVLA Stuart Summerhayes

Talbot Green, Pontyclun

The French won’t help us with this

SO Priti Patel tells us that she is talking to the French Government about stopping illegal immigrants leaving their shores to cross to the UK.

We are expected to believe that will help. I sincerely hope that she doesn’t.

When were the French last our allies?

De Gaulle didn’t want us until he needed help in the war, the EU didn’t want to help with the immigrant problem so, why would anyone on that side of the channel aid us now?

Ms Patel you can fool some of the people some of the time but as far as your concerned it looks as if you can be fooled all of the time!

Ron Boyce

Cardiff

No consideration for local residents

IN response to your correspondent Cullan Wing (South Wales Echo letters July 28) Chapter Arts Centre, Cardiff, is in a residential area and yes the actual building has made positive moves in supressing noise. That point I will agree with you on.

You say at the end of your letter about my moving from the area which I fully expected from Chapterites and I repeat the part of my letter (did you miss this) why should I?

There are other points you raise about me without any foundation the first being suggesting I have sensitive hearing.

Firstly nobody needs sensitive hearing to hear the noise made by Chaperites leaving the venue.

That isn’t Chapter’s fault and I was not laying the blame on the venue.

It is the inconsiderate morons coming out I was criticising.

They do often loiter and do make noise. Fact.

Oh and my hearing is the complete oppisite of sensitive for your information.

Another point was the desperation to have marquees set up on the front and rear open areas. Can you tell me how you will make the noise level restricted if this happened given the closeness to houses in a residential area.

You also state I made alledgedly illegal allegations.

The only illegal allegation I made was about some ignorant selfish morons who use Chapter parking in residential paid for parking spaces.

That is the only illegal allegation... it isn’t an allegation its a fact... I made.

There is no police station in the library it is an office and it is not generally open to the public as is the case of a common police station.

And to try and get anything done about illegally parked morons by the police will be met with a response of

Their choice of action is even more preplexing given that UHW has offered them space within their forthcoming rebuild Nerys Lloyd-Pierce Chair, Cardiff Civic Society

its a council matter.

And you don’t get the wardens out at night.

So in conclusion I do not need to keep quiet over the disturbance from Chapterites late at night.

It is the morons who have no consideration or etiquette using the venue who need to keep quiet. I am not criticising Chapter itself.

Keith Shackson Canton, Cardiff