NO-ONE would deny the benefits brought by mobile telephones. Despite annoying interruptions, how many lives have been saved by a timely call to emergency services on a mobile when no landline is available?

The technology has progressed and now we can watch video on our telephones. In order to make this work, the new 3G network requires three times as many telecommunication masts as under the previous technology. The legislation that was put in place in 1983 to assist the rolling out of the original network is still in place today and this is causing great resentment both locally and across the whole country.

Currently, all but a few minor considerations have to be ignored by our locally elected district councillors when considering telephone mast planning applications - the legislation is written to favour the telephone operators.

So when there is an application for a telephone mast to go up in a residential area and residents object, or a school wants one on its grounds and parents worry for their children, local district councillors are powerless to reflect the concerns when giving permission.

On March 3, Conservative MP David Curry is presenting his Private Member's Bill for its first reading. It is designed to re-adjust the balance of planning on masts back to district councils. In this way, local residents will have a say, via their local councillors, on their opinion regarding these local eyesores.

The Government is against this Bill. It blocked an identical Bill in 2004 and will try to do likewise in March.

Wyre Forest residents have already helped me enormously by signing a petition for a law change a year ago. This Bill is, in part, the result of that petition. But residents can help again.

In order for this Bill to become law, David Curry needs the support of as many Labour backbenchers as he can get.

If anyone reading this would like to help, can I please ask them to get in touch with friends, family, work colleagues - anyone - who lives in a Labour-held constituency to write to their MP urging them to support David Curry's Telecommunications Masts (Planning Control) Bill 2006.

This Bill will not get rid of masts, but it will change the law to allow district councillors to reflect your views when considering planning applications.

MARK GARNIER

Wyre Forest Conservative

Parliamentary Spokesman,

Margaret Thatcher House,

Mill Street, Kidderminster

WE live in Beaufort Avenue Kidderminster, a small cul-de-sac that runs alongside Habberley Road/Habberley Lane. O2 phone company has applied to site a mast a few feet away from our house, right next to the field on the corner, as well as another one at the Esso petrol garage site further down the road.

Due to the application being submitted over the Christmas period, very few people living close to and overlooking this proposed mast were aware of the plans. There has been a lot of publicity against the Esso site, but we feel most people in the area are totally unaware that they are trying to erect two masts. With so few people being aware of this application and all the support against the Esso mast, we could end up losing out.

The field opposite our house where they plan to site this mast is greenbelt land and this would totally spoil the outlook and area. There are also health concerns, although no-one will let us oppose the plans on these grounds as a health risk has not been proved.

I have been informed that it is still worthwhile people writing in to object to the planning applications and that they can attend the planning meeting on Tuesday at 6pm in the Earl Baldwin Suite at Duke House, Clensmore Street, Kidderminster.

So please, help us in our battle to preserve this very pretty part of Kidderminster and make your views known.

SHERRY STEPHENS

Beaufort Avenue, Kidderminster