Scrap permits:

fewer beds!

IN response to Mr Docwra’s letter of December 9. His opinion seems to be that the decline in the number of beds and parking permits is responsible for the decline in his business. If the permit system is scrapped there will be even less beds in guest houses.

I am more inclined to think that people have not got as much money for the little extras as they used to, and perhaps parents prefer to give their children less sugary snacks than they used to.

As a guest house owner I know that our trade relies on this permit scheme to survive.

The Tourist Industry is the life blood of this town responsible for 27.3pc of all employment in this town. And 1.3 million people stayed over in 2010 (GYTA figures); do we want to lose this trade, I think not. Lose guest houses and hotels and we will lose more shops, restaurants, pubs and seafront attractions, what will that do to unemployment?

That said, I am also a resident and I dread the thought of our parking going back to the bad old days of not being able to park anywhere near my home in the summer.

Since the scheme came in there have been a number of housing developments built in this area without parking spaces and we have lost parking spaces. We will end up with utter chaos if this plan goes ahead.

Cllr. Charles Reynolds has stated that people will still pay to park on the seafront.

What planet is he living on? I would park a short walk from the seafront if it meant I would have a few more pounds to spend on my family. How much revenue will be lost from seafront parking if visitors park in the streets for free?

In a recent meeting he said that his constituents of Ormesby find it difficult to park in the town and it’s not fair to them. Would it be fair if we parked outside their homes for free?

When questioned on recharges (�50,000 per year apparently), Mr Reynolds clearly stated that he didn’t understand what the recharges were for, shame on you Mr Reynolds; �50,000 a year and you don’t know what its been spent on, are you not supposed to understand and look after our interests?

In a cynical, and in my opinion underhand way, the council has arranged for the consultation documents to be sent to people outside the parking zone to people who are currently unaffected.

Come on Mr Reynolds, you admitted you were wrong on the Gorleston issue, now admit you are wrong on this for the sake of the residents and tourism in Great Yarmouth. Save the parking permits!

LESLEY HEAD

The Beach House,

Great Yarmouth

Mail driving

people away

WE have all been waiting for the dreaded letter through the post, no, not the gas/electricity bill, but the card from Royal Mail telling you they cannot deliver a card because the incorrect stamp has been placed on a card - and it is �1.22 to pick it up.

The next day I duly joined a queue topick this card up to find it was an ordinary card with a second class stamp on but unfortunately it measured 170mm x 170mm not the required 165mm x 240mm. I will buy my friend a ruler for Christmas then next year she will get it right!

Surely the Royal Mail is driving people away from using the postal service, and also, what happens to all the cards people do not pick up.

May I wish all my family and friends a very merry Christmas and a Happy New Year just in case you have not received my card.

MARLENE HEWITT

Holly Avenue,

Great Yarmouth

Sad loss of a

local champion

SO sorry to hear that Celia Ebbage has died. She was such a prolific correspondent in the Mercury’s letter pages, championing local causes with her knowledgeable, occasionally cryptic comment.

I remember her in the fifties as she sailed on the Broads with her husband, George, who was quite an accomplished watercolour artist. Some of his attractive broadland scenes and wildfowl pictures could be seen in his office on South Quay.

After his death she championed his work, and could be seen up until recently at the local art shows casting her critical eye over the exhibits.

Her views in the newspaper will be sadly missed.

BRYAN HAYLETT

Busseys Loke,

Bradwell

Councillors are

living in past

ON the subject of car parking (Mercury, December 16), our councillors seem to be living in the past - again.

Given that most visitors will come by car, especially as we have few direct rail links except to Norwich, it is vital we have a sensible parking strategy.

Why on earth does seafront parking start in April and last until the end of October.

Surely, we need to encourage a long season. I would suggest it is only at the peak season (school holidays) when we need to charge. Why does it start at 8am - hardly any visitors then!

Caister Beach Road car park is worthy of “Yes Minister”.

The arrangements seem to reflect when Caister was a thriving tourist centre. The car park is empty for most of the time!

There is no need for charges out of peak season. I would think car park fee collection returns would show this.

To show how far behind the councillors are, the charges run from 8am-9pm.

How many people are going to be parked at this site at 8am and after 4pm? Madness. I would suggest, if anything, peak season and from 10-4pm.

The sign says charges operate until September 31!

Hopefully, the car parking in Gorleston on the pier will get sorted for the 2012 season - another example of being out of touch.

Should we really need the private sector to try to solve the problem. Yours faithfully, and in despair of our council.

CHRIS WRIGHT

Victoria Street,

Caister

Wishin’ yar

readars orl best

WELL, oi jus warta wish yar orl thar very best far thar Chrismiss and orl thar best far thar New Yar. Yew moind hew yew go an dorn’t yew be a drinkin ana droivin, thar Corffers [police] are a-lookin ewt at thar toime o yar, then yar a be a gittin caught an then thar will lose thar loicence and then yar’l be a forrit.

So wishin thar editor and thar readars orl thar best. Do yew keep atroshin bor.

BOY JIMMY

Aka ROGER HAYES

Beccles Road

Bradwell

Another market

day is spoiled

OH dear, the town centre managers have got it all wrong again. Lovely Salvation Army doing their bit for the Christmas atmosphere and a lovely group of Army cadets.

Then it all went wrong and organisers allowed Christian fanatics on to play music sing and chant and tell all and sundry their past lives and present life.

It was awful how many people had to go and have a word with them.

We on the stalls have to listen to the folk on the market and this we could not do. Do we really need to listen to others’ religions.

I have my own but don’t feel the need to share it in the middle of the market with a microphone. Another nice day spoilt.

SUE GIBBS

email

Mystery woman

paid for meal

I WOULD like, through your letters page, to take this opportunity to thank a very kind lady who through the kindness of her heart gave myself and five friends an early and much appreciated Christmas gift. After enjoying a meal at the Toby Carvery, Gorleston, we were told by the waitress that we had no need to pay for our meal, due to the fact that a lady had already paid for all six of us and had left the restaurant asking to remain anonymous. We were all overwhelmed by this generosity and did not want to see this kind act go unnoticed. We would like to wish this lady a very happy Christmas. Thank you.

JAMES WYER

St James Crescent

Belton

Sleigh appeal

is a success

MAY I take this opportunity through your letters column to thank all those people in the Great Yarmouth area who have supported the Santa’s Sleigh Appeal for 2011 as organised by the Great Yarmouth Lions Club.

In addition to delighting many hundreds of children with Santa’s visit I am pleased to announce that despite the difficult economic climate this year the appeal has raised nearly �7,000 for the club’s Charity Account. The Great Yarmouth Lions Club has given more than �10,000 to the local community in the last 12 months ranging from donations to the Palliative Care Appeal at the James Paget Hospital and the NHS Cycle Response Unit to a number of smaller organisations and deserving individuals.

The club would also like to thank its sponsors together with Yarmouth Police for their support in keeping the Sleigh on the road. Special thanks must also go to Kingswood Conservatories for providing Santa and his reindeer with a temporary stable during the Appeal.

The club would like to thank all its supporters who have supported Lions events and appeals during 2011 and wish everyone a Happy New Year for 2012. For further information on Lions activities in the Yarmouth area, contact the secretary on 01502 730923.

GRAHAM GIBBINS

Secretary

A packed event

in lifeboat shed

I FELT that some comment needed to be made about the wonderful event in Caister at the lifeboat shed. The place was packed; somehow the crew had found enough chairs in the village so everyone had a chair. All Caister schools were there with their choirs and it was a pleasure to hear them singing. Stalham Brass Band played the music for the carols that everyone sang. It was a very enjoyable afternoon with so many people present. I needed to get into a Christmas mood and this afternoon did that for me.

JUNE BAKER

Belstead Avenue,

Caister

No complaints

about my care

I HAVE just spent four days at the James Paget Hospital in early December on ward 6. I have no complaints with the treatment or attention I received from surgeon, nurses, physios or other staff on the ward, day or night. Yes, they were all very busy daily with paperwork and a lack of staff. The food I received was very good; plenty of it and a good choice.

I would not hesitate to go back for any other operations at the James Paget Hospital.

So come on let’s hear some good things about our hospital not all doom and gloom.

PETER JERMY

Coldham Close

Ormesby St Margaret

Help me with

boys literature

I WRITE in the hope that your readers may be able to help me with my research into the history of boys literature.

I would be grateful for any information/details related to authors, illustrators and publishers. Also if you remember reading them and if they helped mould your life. Information about collections or libraries, even single books can help.

IVAN FARROW 8 Mongers Mead

Barcombe, East Sussex

BN8 5BE

Thank you

Mr Postman!

ENOUGH can’t be said for the service we receive from our postman. He appears six days a week in all weathers whether it be sunny, raining, icy, windy, snowing or even a combination of them all and he is always smiling or whistling as he rides his bike up to our gate. A lot can be learnt from this man’s approach to his job, he is a fantastic role model for his peers and other service providers.

Thank you Mr Postman, it’s a pleasure to see you each morning.

GARY SMITH

Trafalgar Road

Great Yarmouth

Welcomed into

Helen Hill home

RE: THE husband of Helen Hill, former member of the Great Yarmouth Operatic and Dramatic Society and his business partners Messrs Wilcock and Rutherford.

Having written to my friends and Geraint Fielder of Abergavenny to acknowledge how God had blessed us, she wrote back to tell me that a journalist is writing the history of the Scout Group and has been looking for Wilcock and Rutherford for six years. I think the journalist in question is a lady and must appreciate the achievement that Messrs Wilcock and Rutherford’s life work expressed.

The history will comment on all sorts of predicaments, including the time Frank Wilcock the pianist played a ditty - for the choir to join in - and underlined that things were rarely as they had looked.

I would like to thank the journalist for her work and the fact that as a soldier, Mrs Hill’s husband welcomed us into his home.

MAVIS WILCOCK

Scudamore Place

Bungay

Fine for wheelie

walker parking!

I WOULD like to bring to the attention of disabled drivers with wheelie walkers not to park outside the front of Aldi. I have been fined �40 for overstaying time and another �40 if I don’t pay by a certain time.

I have appealed against it but so far have heard nothing. We’ve shopped there since it opened regularly and never had this problem before.

However this time we decided to get our Christmas shopping in, so with reading labels and me walking very slowly it took longer.

The shop was very busy and yet there was only one girl on the tills so we had to queue. It takes five minutes to get my wheelie out of the car and the same putting it back so that didn’t help. Another person on the checkout would be a help.

So disabled drivers beware – we were 10 minutes over the limited time.

J W JOHNSON

Gorleston

Town parking: I am confused

AM I the only one who is thoroughly confused about the resident’s parking scheme in Great Yarmouth?

I dimly recall some years ago when the scheme was first introduced that the guest house owners were up in arms about it saying it would kill their trade.

Was it real or did I imagine some tell of holiday makers driving round endlessly to park and totally overlooking guest houses who didn’t have spaces?

Perhaps it was in the same dream that I recall guest house owners saying they had people on their doorsteps ready to make a booking but who didn’t end up staying over because they couldn’t park the car.

Also, was it not said that the permit scheme would destroy the night-time economy because anyone parking overnight would be caught out at 8am by the enforcement patrols?

Now all of a sudden its the best thing ever.

Now that some at Norfolk County Council are saying they want to scrap it, people are all saying its wonderful. I honestly don’t know who is right and who is wrong, I am simply confused.

Mrs E WATSON

Ormesby St Margaret