Stop bailing out airport and find a private buyer

THERE is a saying – “if you make a mistake and a disaster happens and you repeat the same mistake the disaster will happen again and again”.

Unfortunately, this does not seem to have occurred to the Welsh Government which continues to pour money into Cardiff Airport again and again. I know all airports have struggled during the pandemic but Cardiff Airport’s problems go back years and years.

We must not forget that however convenient Cardiff Airport is for the people of South Wales, it is of no interest whatsoever to the people of North Wales or even Mid Wales, who use Manchester, Liverpool or Birmingham airports (probably one reason why Abolish the Welsh Assembly is strongest there).

Apart from the airport there is a heavily subsidised bus service and a daily flight to North Wales, also heavily subsidised. It is time Cardiff Airport was sold and put into private (British) hands and allowed to find its own commercial level.

David Gorton

Rumney, Cardiff

We need overhaul of drugs policy

AS A former mathematics teacher, I witnessed the whole spectrum of bad behaviour, social problems and weak professional response from authorities but it required a savage drug-gang feud in Oxford to recognise a watershed moment: culture and policies to manage the narcotics market must change.

An ex-pupil of mine was brutally murdered, by machete and golf clubs, in an Oxford council estate alleyway three years back (a finger of his was located in a nearby garden). This young boy, when I knew him, was sweet, difficult, unstable but also full of life, character, personality and charisma. In addition, he understood the abstract nature of algebra and could manage percentage quantities which probably assisted him in his career choice as a drug dealer. He played in my school five-a-side team with merit and his antics, on occasions, made me laugh as a mechanism to assuage my concern for his future (on exclusion, he would refuse to open the house door to home tutors in maths and English and laugh at them from the bedroom window).

For the last three days, my sole image of this 27-year-old man is of an evil, callous, brutal and barbarian attack on a human being who should aspire to die peacefully in a bed somewhere surrounded by caring family.

When will we realise that current drug policy will never eliminate the market demand for recreational drugs and that legalisation of this market is the lesser of two evils? The obvious inconsistency with the legal purchase of alcohol – anywhere – is glaring or even the retail of tobacco.

There are other issues and factors at play here such as the emphasis of the importance of education to young people, the consequences of life choices, the list goes on.

Our pursuit of societal Utopia has only just started and will only stop when young bodies no longer lie mutilated in urban alleyways. The waste in human life and its potential is truly tragic.

Ian Roblin

Llanishen, Cardiff

Flat renovation looks too costly

I HAVE felt no hostility to date, nor any marked dislike, for the Prime Minister’s fiancee, Carrie Symonds.

Rather have I felt some positive approval that she is able to stand up for herself in dealing, not only with her partner, Boris, but with members of the political inner circle which congregate around any Prime Minister.

Further, her interest in animal welfare would seem to be to her credit, while her reported dislike of Dominic Cummings and some other individuals in the corridors of power who later left Downing Street shows she has had probable sound judgement, at least on those matters.

When it comes to refurbishing the flat in 11 Downing Street (not 10 Downing Street) this is where she loses nearly all of my qualified admiration for her, since her plans are so extravagant. Boris can’t afford to find all that money so why should others pay, when there are so many more legitimate ways of using the reported £200,000 cost of not just repairs but extensive remodelling, if that is the word? I disapprove of what looks like extreme luxury.

One does not expect them to live in a council house, nor an average semi, but they do have Chequers to relax in, as well as the Downing Street flat.

At the end of the day, the personal relationship between Boris and Carrie is up to them. It is still early days. But politicians are or should always be conscious of how their activities are perceived. Is Carrie auditioning for the role of playing the part of historical characters at the chateau of Versailles soon before the French revolution towards the end of the 18th Century? “Let them eat cake” etc.

Personal issues of the present kind can have resonance and damage the general popularity of Boris Johnson’s government. Most people have a sense of what is fair and reasonable in upgrading property and by the same token an instinct that some refurbishment projects go beyond the reasonable at a difficult economic period.

Michael O’Neill

Penarth

Make childhood as safe as possible

THE challenges faced over the last year have been unlike any other generation and the true scale of its impact will manifest in the months and years to come. For many children, the uncertainty and worry from the pandemic has taken a toll on their mental health, while others have felt trapped in unsafe homes cut off from their usual support networks.

The scale of support required to help children and young people in Wales recover and reconnect is huge and the next Welsh Government has a duty to address this.

It’s crucial Senedd members take a deliberately long view, keeping children at the forefront of their recovery plans and ensuring services are fully resourced to meet the demand we foresee.

At NSPCC Cymru/Wales we’ve laid out how we think they can do this – nspcc.org.uk/ManifestoWales – focusing on five key visions:

■ Keeping children safe is everyone’s responsibility;

I know all airports have struggled during the pandemic but Cardiff Airport’s problems go back years and years

David Gorton

every child is safe online; children are supported to speak out and recover from abuse;

families struggling with perinatal mental health, domestic abuse or adversity linked to poverty can access early and adequate support;

and children get the mental health support they need.

I’m urging all candidates to pledge their support to fight for safer childhoods.

Cecile Gwilym

Policy & Public Affairs Manager NSPCC Cymru/Wales

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