Message did not travel

IN your report on the removal of the travellers from Beach Station car park. What you failed to mention is that most of them promptly moved to South Denes where the police operation had to be repeated. The police obviously did not make the message “Get out of Dodge” clear enough the first time.

Mr J E BROWN

Orchard Close

Caister

PAY for parking on Gorleston Cliff top car park? Whatever next: double yellow lines all the way along Marine Parade? Banning dogs on the beach? (I wish).

People come here to just relax, gaze out to sea and maybe take a short stroll. They don't want to pay for what should be a given free right to enjoy the beauty of our unique Gorleston; that's what makes it so special and we don't wardens checking that no one is taking more time than they have paid for.

Just leave things as they are, and to keep Councillor Marie Field quiet, give Caister back their free parking so they can enjoy their views and the beach for free as well.

JEAN STACEY

Pound Lane,

Gorleston

FOR the record Labour has no plans for introducing car parking charges on Gorleston Cliffs - and I doubt the Tory council will give way after their very public forced u-turn on the issue a year or two ago in the face of strong public opposition from Gorleston people!

I think your reporter has missed the point of Marie Field's campaign to remove charges on the Beach Road car park in Caister - I know that Marie's contention is that people in Caister deserve similar treatment. There will be a lot of people there who will agree with her!

I've been around long enough as a local councillor to know that there is no one single policy that can satisfy the whole borough with regard to parking. Living as I do in Yarmouth itself I can tell you that there is no question whatsoever of removing car parking charges here - Labour's policy here is to seek to protect local residents 'quality of life' by introducing residents permit parking schemes wherever it is justified by pressure on parking. Different strokes for different folks!

MICK CASTLE

Leader, Labour Group

Great Yarmouth Borough Council

Editor's Note: We beg to differ. The Mercury reporter has not missed the point. It is the information we were told by the councillor involved. We were told if removing pay and display at Caister was not an option, she would fight to get charges introduced at Gorleston to make fair.

SO the “spoi1ers” are at it again, trying to turn the Gorleston Cliff car park into a pay and display. Just because people have to pay to park on the Caister Beach Road car park, is that a valid reason to try and inflict the same on others? After all two wrongs don't make a right. If the Labour group thinks that such an unpopular campaign will ingratiate themselves and help them gain control of the council, then they want their bumps read.

PAULINE LYNCH,

Mill Lane,

Bradwell

WHAT a tirade by Marie Field against the users of Gorleston's free park. Gorleston has long protested at the lack of money allocated to Gorleston generally, and the seafront in particular. So, we have a free park - thanks; it is appreciated by many, including elderly dog walkers, many of whom visit every day, some more than once. Other regulars may just spend a short time reading a newspaper etc.

This, however, is of no consequence, we have fought our battle to keep it free; you fight your own battle. Maybe you should be looking at residents' parking only where residents have complained.

What respect will local voters have on a council, who, after spending ratepayers' money on the barriers etc on the cliffs, changes its mind after listening to all the protests etc, and then does a double u-turn based on one councillor's comments on an entirely separate issue to which there is possibly more than one solution.

DEREK COOK

Middlestone Close

Gorleston

IN response to Mr Birch's letter in last week's Mercury, I would like to point out that there already appears to be a 'carte blanche' regarding the flouting of parking restrictions in the town. Nelson Road Central is often almost impassable due to the number of illegally parked vehicles. In the North/Middle Market Road area it is usual to see cars parked on the pavement overnight. Blockbuster (King Street) seems to have its own private parking facility right outside the door, I could go on.

There are parking wardens for the residents parking zones, and these will issue tickets almost immediately in the event that someone inadvertently parks in the wrong bay. Double yellow lines however seem to mean nothing. If there are more than two traffic wardens I have never seen them. I imagine that most of their shift is spent on the seafront because they are never seen in the 'back streets' of the town, which is, of course, where they are most needed.

I'm afraid that it seems the town has been allowed to become almost lawless, is this because there is no point in issuing tickets to people who would never be traced and forced to pay the fine? “Travellers”, for example?

SHAUN LAYTON

Trafalgar Court

Great Yarmouth

I FEAR that “once bitten, twice shy” will apply to visitors to Great Yarmouth, when and if we get a ferry service from the Continent. Why? Parking.

Two of my relatives came from Cyprus to visit a sick member of the family, hiring a car and driving into Yarmouth. They were told to look out for a parking space on the seafront car parks, and then walk to the Pub of the Prom where we were to meet for lunch, but inevitably, they found themselves in Princes Road, saw the nearby Pub on the Prom, and parked in a “hole” on the roadside. They did not understand the sign meant they could not park there. Had it said: “Resident's Only Parking”, or “No Parking” they might have had a chance with their limited English language.

And so they got a fine - and they were shellshocked to see £55 written on the front. In fact, they went ashen-faced. That amount of money when converted to the Euro in Cyprus is equal to three days pay.

Of course, when opened up the ticket is revealed to be for £25 if paid within seven days, which I did to thank them for coming to see us.

But if we are to get more people from Europe visiting - and maybe bringing their cars using the roll on, roll off ferry, wouldn't it be wise to get signs which are recognisable to all? If we do slap parking tickets on anyone and everyone then I think we can say goodbye to future visits. They'll drive through and on to Norwich.

Mrs V HOLLINGWORTH

Anson Road,

Great Yarmouth

WE visited Great Yarmouth this year, as we have done for the last four years - and what a change there is to St George's Park. In the past it has not been a place we have relished walking through - in fact, it has been quite unnerving and menacing. Not any more though.

On Monday this week, we were pleasantly surprised to find it open, bright and full of people taking advantage of the summer weather, eating lunches and reading books and newspapers, and lots of children on the play equipment.

There was not a drunk in sight! There were no groups of foul-mouthed yobs in sight! It was lovely and peaceful as it should be and much appreciated.

A MOTSON,

Stourbridge,

West Midlands

I AM sorry to read about the demise of Caroline Seagull Coaches. I worked for them about 16 years as a driver and really enjoyed the work until I retired. I found Jeff Buckle, Mrs Jenny Buckle and Mark Buckle very warm and friendly people to work for. I knew Jeffery since we were children. They also had a good crew of employees working for them.

MICHAEL HOLT

Stone Road

Cobholm

IN response to “Bring Back Free Plastic Bags” (Letters, August 1), I feel I really must reply. The lady who wrote this article must surely have been living with her head in one of her plastic bags! Does she not see plastic bags in every hedgerow, caught in fences around every supermarket and in the case of Asda in Yarmouth drifting towards the river and God knows where then?

I totally disagree that supermarkets should give out free bags - I have seen shoppers leaving the shops with perhaps a dozen or more such bags half full. Please be more environmentally aware and buy reusable bags from Oxfam, the Sue Ryder Charity Shop or PDSA or plain hessian. Even reuse old bags. We all have to stop thinking about the moment and look to the future and try to do our own bit for the world however small it may be.

Name and Address withheld

NO sooner am I back in circulation, than yet another of my pet subjects rears its head: flood sirens. I previously wrote about these sirens and their maintenance, but now it is even worse - £37,000 for maintenance and seven are out of action!

Having spent some 55 years working with electric motors and control gear, had I failed to do my job properly, I would have been sacked. Being a bit of a cynic, I think it is probably those who carried out the maintenance.

I would dearly like to meet these people to check on their work and credentials, having spent much of my apprenticeship re-winding and repairing electric motors for the Admiralty and the other Armed Forces. We had to satisfy them that we had carried out the work to “spec” and correctly. I admit that electronics did not exist with these wartime days, but later, in my working life, I had to learn about them with refrigeration. Perhaps the maintenance staff should attend a course on electric motors and control gear - we might then have trouble-free sirens (A11 57).

How do I obtain access to a copy of the original contract for maintenance of sirens? This should prove to be interesting reading.

LESLIE COLLETT

The Fairway

Caister

RE the annual meeting of Great Yarmouth and Gorleston Allotments Association, (Letters, August 1).

Mr A Fisk stated: A dedicated member of the Association; true, the meeting was a fiasco, and in my opinion he was the main culprit. I ask, is Mr A Fisk trying to take control?

Re Letter, Mr M Postle, August 8. He stated: Nobody seems to care; sagging fences? Are those the responsibility of the Allotment Association or the council? As for taps, I have contacted Mr Tennant and repairs were done the same day.

A caravan chassis was dumped on the allotment by a previous tenant; not roadworthy. It was reported and dismantled by Mr Tennant and Mr W Edwards, two valued members - who could ask for more?

As for carpets on allotments, I have a 94-year-old gentleman on my group, using garden tools - no weeds, no carpets.

RONALD HUGGINS

Crab Lane Group

IN the reorganisation of schools in East Norfolk from September 1, Northgate St Andrews will take children from Year R to Year Two only. However, it will retain the name Northgate St Andrews First School.

COLLEEN PALMER

School Governor

Northgate St Andrew's First School

WITH reference to the recent fire at the Seletar Services on Queen's Road in the early hours of last Tuesday morning, I would like to pay tribute to all the emergency services involved.

The onset of the fire was just like an inferno with the flames and sparks being fanned across onto nearby properties my own included, and resulting in some residents having to vacate their homes.

Within the hour the fire was contained and under control. Without their dedication and expertise I could so easily be without a home today. I cannot praise them enough. My grateful thanks to all concerned.

GLORIA WEBB

Camden Place

Great Yarmouth

THE fireworks in Yarmouth are just getting better. My wife and I and my kids have been going to the fireworks in Yarmouth every Wednesday and this year they just got bigger and even better. Please bring them back next year.

TIM and KIRSTY LONG

St Anthony's Avenue

Gorleston

ONCE again we see Tories' true colours emerging, after their favourite think-tank, Policy Exchange, claimed that cities such as Liverpool have failed and that paying those who live there to move down south is the only sensible option.

Successive governments have failed to support many local councils in trying to rejuvenate their local and regional economies. Instead, many have been reduced to watching money and attention being poured into already bulging areas such as Cambridge and the corridor south to London, and bringing unwanted levels of new housing 'development' to Norfolk (ie to the entire 'metropolitan area' of Norwich, and also to Thetford).

Policy Exchange says that the heavy population-pressure on the south and east of the country should be redoubled, putting further strain on public services, tarmacking over more green spaces and more pristine countryside, ruining forever the character of our existing villages, market-towns, and cities. The Green Party says the exact opposite. We say that pressure should be taken off the over-heating south and east of this country, and that regional development pressures should be directed to those parts of the country that actually need it: such as parts of the north (eg Liverpool and some north-eastern metropolitan areas). It is insane to be concreting over the London and the Norwich 'greenbelts', to be swallowing up our villages into new suburbs, and to be turning our market towns into commuter dormitories. It is insane to be building on floodplains, for instance - when there is a much greater need for employment in parts of the north, and (in many cases) already existing housing there just waiting to be used. Meanwhile, there is plenty of scope in this part of the country for creating the affordable housing that is actually needed, on existing brownfield sites.

We can preserve the character of our county and our countryside - but only if we focus housing growth in other parts of the country, and don't allow urban sprawl to blight East Anglia.

COUNCILLOR RUPERT READ

Prospective Green Party MEP for Eastern Region

WITH the recent spate of teenage deaths from knife crime, I have decided to start my own campaign on the Labour party website in the hope that a lot of people will join me in my quest to bring justice to the victims and their families.

I am just 18 and having lost a close friend to such terrible circumstances, Martin Dinnegan 14, I am passionate about making a stand and getting my voice heard.

My campaign is proposing that life sentences should be equal to the severity of taking somebody's life. The life sentence at the moment is ridiculous, killers are getting away with as little as five years imprisonment, how is this justice? Life should either mean life or a sentence of an average quarter of a life which would be a minimum of 25 years.

I would really appreciate it if you could publish the link to my campaign through your paper so that I can recruit as many people as I can from all over the UK.

ALEX JONSON

London

http://crime.labourspace.com