Western Daily Press (Saturday)
Pumping must start before rivers are full
photo of yourself. We did it on the phone, spoke to a nice man who said no problem, and sorted it out there and then, told us we would get a cheque and altered my tax code. Worth the effort, wasn’t it?
Patrick Collins By email the Lib Dems had many local councillors at the time of previous general elections and yet still came a distant third behind Labour.
Voters know that general elections are used to elect a national government and to choose someone to take our voice to Westminster. The Labour Party is the overwhelming favourite to form the next government, with YouGov currently showing Labour on 47% and the Conservatives on 20% nationally.
The Lib Dems are on 9% and will not form a government. So, electing a Labour MP would give us in Central Devon more of an ability to influence and work with a potential Labour government. Sticking with Mel Stride would make us even less empowered than he has already made us.
We are in desperate need to move past this divided and incompetent Conservative government. A Labour MP for Central Devon would give us a strong voice inside a new Labour government. It’s time for a change. To make that happen, get in touch at https://www.labourcentraldevon. org/. We want to hear from you.
Laurie Laybourn Vice chair, Central Devon Labour Party and do business. So maybe Bristol should aim to become the UK’s first city dedicated to countering fraud. We know this is a huge problem: it’s booming. It’s now the biggest form of crime against the person in England and Wales. The government has launched a new Stop! Think Fraud campaign but it’s not enough. We need to do more at local level.
How could we become a CounterFraud City? We could promote more prevention of fraud in the first place and more awareness-raising, so people are alert to the risks of fraud and deception. What is this crime? It’s lying for money. Is it OK? No it’s not. Is it a ‘victimless crime’? No, it’s not – ask any victim. Only the fraudsters say it’s a victimless crime.
It’s time for the police and local authorities to get real and start tackling this menace. We need a 360 degree all-round approach.
As well as more work on prevention and awareness and detection, we need to promote more use by citizens (that’s us, folks!) of the legal routes to justice. That means more use of the civil law, and more awareness of Personal Injury law. You can bring a Personal Injury case for the stress and anxiety that fraud causes, as well as for the economic loss, when you know who the perpetrators are, where they live, and they are in the UK.
Citizens can also bring a private prosecution for criminal offences where these have been committed.
Where the facts in a civil law case for damages are so clear and documented, and there is no need for a trial, you can apply for what is called ‘summary judgment’ from a civil law judge (a district judge) and then the judgment can be made before it all goes to court.
The Small Claims Court, before anyone objects, is not a proper court at all. It is just a room and the judge is not robed up. It’s not like Rumpole of the Bailey. It’s designed to be accessible for ordinary citizens like you and me.
So could Bristol be the UK’s first Counter-Fraud City? Over to you, leaders! We need real leadership on counter-fraud work.
Tom Hill Bristol
IN response to Chris Rundle’s column about flooding (March 13). I farm at Ashton, near Wedmore, on a hill, so am not affected by flooding, but I have sympathy for all those down on the moors.
We all understand the land is lowlying, but farmers are saying that if only the Environment Agency would support pumping when heavy rain is forecast, rather than waiting until the flooding has actually happened, things would be very different.
Weather forecasts are pretty accurate these days.
I know this year we have had rain for a long time, but there have been gaps and it seems to me it would reduce the flooding if the pumping could start before the rivers are all full.
It can be difficult because of the tides – they can only pump when the tide is ebbing – so we know there is a timescale, so again it makes sense to move water off early.”
John Denbee, Wedmore