'Shameful and insulting rise'

SIR - First of all a pay rise of 8/10 per cent for our councillors is an absolute insult to nurses and the other emergency service workers who are currently on a pay freeze.

Why doesn’t Councillor Geraghty go and shadow an A&E nurse for a couple of weeks, after a 12 hour gruelling shift is over he can accompany her to the food bank so she can feed her or his family, then we can ask him if he deserves the pay rise or not.

The Prime Minister told a nurse on question time a few weeks ago that there is no magic money tree. “It becomes apparent there is Theresa”.

Secondly, with all the recent cut backs in public services and the recent fiascos on our road networks this is an absolute insult to the people of Worcestershire.

I read this story on the Worcester News Facebook page before it was published in the paper, to which there were 127 responses and not one person agreed with this ludicrous pay rise.

Now I do believe we live in a democratic country so lets put it to a public vote, if the Facebook response is anything to go by then we have the answer.  This pay rise of 8/10 per cent is a recommendation by an independent panel, they are not obliged to accept it but it appears that they already have. Shame on them.

John Matthews

Worcester

'HS2 project is just madness'

SIR - As the government are going ahead with HS2, I was forced to write to Chris Grayling MP.

As there’s one aspect the Government haven’t considered, being something new, it’s inevitable some young hooligan will throw something on the line just to see what will happen?

The whole length of the line, is impossible to be policed 24/7, logs, concrete blocks, snow and wet leaves are all hazards, now the cost is in the billions, this whole project is sheer madness, another item to think about, how will they stop wildlife straying onto the line at night, at 200 mph.

There will be a lot of dead meat for miles.

Then there’s the kids playing chicken, yet all they need to do, is put on an extra carriage, instead of 4 we will have 4, I thought it was logical, due to the government.

Just thinking financially, any safety features are pushed aside, they think more of their pockets and not the passengers.

L Presley

Worcester

'Millionaires’ money poser'

SIR, It would be very interesting to know what all those people who are paid millions of pounds a year, actually do with their money.

They can’t spend it all. Can they?

JL Reynolds

Worcester

'Who enforces graves rule?'

SIR, Re: Silk flowers banned at Droitwich Cemetery Your article explains a lot. I go to my mum and dad’s grave twice a year, scrub the headstone, cut the grass and replace the flowers.

Keeping the grave tidy means a lot. I now realise why silk flowers from my last visit have always gone.

Who on earth enforces this rule?

John Heitzmon

Worcester

'It’s a big BBC deception'

SIR, The grand illusion that is the BBC is exposed and the pay is but one of its deceptions.

For decades we’ve been bombarded with how ‘great’ aunty is. In reality aunty is the world’s best propaganda unit and like all with massive egos find it all but impossible to face criticism.

Consider how its ‘talented’ mostly privately educated egos report unions compared to the hours devoted to business reports, mindless competitive shows and fawning over royals.

Yet no programmes about the millions of people in unions that fight daily for a better society.

In Britain we pay for an echo-chamber for the ‘elites’ that is adept at forever deflecting and disguising usually with a false smile.

The last talent they had was Dennis Potter and he couldn’t stomach them describing those he met at Oxford as on the make.

‘Nation shall speak truth and peace unto nation’. Peace indeed, yet our ‘elites’ get us into bloody wars reported by their ‘unbiased’ mates.

Dave Griffiths

Worcester

'Thank you for your support'

SIR - We would like to say a big “thank you” to everyone who was involved in the recent West Malvern Open Gardens, when we welcomed over 250 visitors.

It was a happy community event and raised £2,372.50 for Malvern Special Families.

John and Ruth Pole

Malvern

'My trees rant'

SIR - I’m not usually given to public ranting but the picture of the vandalised trees in the newspaper made me very cross.  “TOO tempting; it’s easy to use the bar to snap the trees. They need cages”.   The mindless vandals need cages..... Rant over.

Iris Checketts

Ombersley