Grantham reader writes about teenagers climbing on roofs - and other letters from Lincolnshire
Readers have had plenty to say on what’s in the news.
Here we share some of the letters, emails and comments that have come in over the week, including this cartoon from John Elson.
Don’t forget, you can always get in touch by emailing news@lincsonline.co.uk
Where are the bees?
Where have all the bees gone?
I have a fair amount of lavender outside my house and usually at this time of year it is full of bees. I've hardly seen any so far?
Is it due to the rainy weather earlier in the season or more sinister, such as Neonicotinoid pesticides, that used to be banned when we were in the EU, and are known bee killers?
Alana Simpson
Grantham
A betrayal of our veterans
South Kesteven District Council has long deliberated on providing much-needed council tax relief for vulnerable veterans living in our area. These brave men and women have sacrificed immensely for our country and our freedom, often at the cost of time with family, physical health, and mental well-being. The scars of their service are profound and enduring, and re-entering civilian life presents significant challenges.
Recognising the debt we owe to our veterans, I spearheaded an initiative to offer 5 to 10% council tax relief for employed South Kesteven veterans living in Band A properties. This modest but meaningful gesture would help alleviate the severe in-work poverty many of our veterans face. A detailed and workable plan emerged, supported by careful work from the officers, and was presented at the 27 June Finance Committee.
Over 70% of residents favoured a scheme to support our veterans in a prior consultation. However, the Rainbow Alliance Administration of Labour, Lib Dems, and Independents are today celebrating blocking this scheme. Councillors Lee Steptoe (Labour), Murray Turner (Lib Dem), Tim Harrison (Grantham Independent), Max Sawyer (Democratic Independent), and Bridget Ley (Independent) voted to deny the public a voice on this matter and supported "no more work" to be undertaken to support veterans in this way.
Their actions are a betrayal of our veterans and a stain on their records. South Kesteven District Council, under their watch, has become a hostile environment for veterans. Despite being signatories of the Armed Forces Covenant, it prefers empty gestures such as black-tie receptions and raising flags over meaningful action.
The hard left, who once championed Jeremy Corbyn and his vision of dismantling the British armed forces, have never supported our military. I will continue to represent their interests and honour the sacrifices they have made for our nation.
Ben Green
South Kesteven District Council (Con - Isaac Newton Ward)
Thank you for your votes
I write this letter at a time when I don’t know the outcome of the election result. Although I’ve fought a hard campaign, and tried my utmost, I’m certainly not expecting to win. The two most important words in the dictionary are ‘Thank You’. I’ve met a lot of really nice people during this election campaign and I’ve very much appreciated the warm welcome that I’ve had. So I would like to say a big thank you to everyone that has supported me and been kind during this campaign. Congratulations to the winner, whoever that may be.
Ian Selby
Grantham and Bourne General Election candidate (Ind)
Railings have been replaced
I note that the metal safety railings on the Sandon Road/Stonebridge Road/Harrowby Road crossroads have all been removed recently and replaced with a series of small wooden posts which give no protection whatsoever to anyone waiting to cross these busy roads. There are many parents and small children who use this junction on a daily basis whilst walking to and from the three primary schools on Sandon Road plus the near-by St Anne’s School in Harrowby Road and the adjacent KGGS for older pupils. Many students from Grantham College also cross the roads here, especially when walking between college properties.
How are any pedestrians, young or old, now supposed to feel safe whilst waiting on any of the busy corners here? Also, without metal railings, it means that all pedestrians plus their family pets, can cross at any point on these corners rather than only on the safest areas defined by the former metal railings, putting both pedestrians and motorists at risk of an accident. As the old railings had been badly damaged previously, obviously accidents do occur here, albeit rarely, but that should not be an excuse to remove them completely thus putting more lives at risk.
Even more worrying is that I have been led to believe that the railings on the extremely busy Wharf Road/ Harlaxton Road/ Westgate etc junction will ALL be replaced by small individual posts in the Autumn, giving no protection whatsoever for the hundreds of pedestrians and cyclists who use this busy intersection regularly. (Apparently this is yet another impractical part of the £4.1 million plan to “improve” Westgate!) Many of these are cyclists on their way to local secondary school, so without any railings on the pedestrian islands it will be extremely dangerous when they are able to cross the roads at any point rather than only at the designated gaps in the current railings. Apparently individual wooden posts will make the junction look less cluttered and therefore more pleasing, but that will be no consolation to any family if/when their loved one is injured in an accident because the metal railings have been removed.
If you are concerned about the removal of safety railings at these two very busy junctions, please lobby your local councillor to express your concerns, and just maybe they will be able to keep the railings at the Wharf Road junction and replace the ones near the High School, but don’t hold your breath!
Lynda North
Grantham
An accident waiting to happen
I would like to share some photos I took on Saturday at around 6.30pm at the Greyfriars car parking next to the Grantham Foodbank. A group of young people took turns to climb onto the roof of the tall building and walked from one side all the way to the other side. I can’t imagine if a roof tile became loose - they could fall and a severe accident could happen.
Name and address supplied
We still want to trace banner
Since our first letter appeared in the Rutland & Stamford Mercury on May 17 we have not been idle in our search for our missing banner.
We discovered that SKDC has a camera located overlooking the bridge next to the Meadows so we contacted the man in charge . As normal citizens we could not get a view of the CCTV but were eventually told that there were some useful images to be seen.
We contacted the police who raised a crime number so they could view the CCTV footage.
I have now been advised that three caucasian youths, aged between 18 and 30 could be seen cutting the banner down and taking it away.
Unfortunately the images were not clear enough to identify the miscreants so this is now an appeal to any readers of the Mercury to offer any suggestion as to who they might be. Also as they took away the banner having cut it down, has anyone seen any sight of it.?
We would still like to get it back as it is valuable to us
David Allen
Welland Valley Arts Society
We will always remember
After the 80th Anniversary of the D Day Normandy landings I would like to make people aware of a local Second World War accident that happened, 80 years ago.
On July 8, 1944 a training exercise was planned and carried out. “Operation Burden”. Taking off from Spanhoe airfield, thirty three C-47 Skytrain aircraft of the 309 Squadron, 315th Troop Carrier of the U.S Airforce. Carrying 369 paratroopers from the Polish First Independent Airborne Brigade, their destination a drop zone of RAF Wittering.
Disaster struck when two aircraft wings collided and became locked and fell to the ground crashing north east of Tinwell next to the river Welland.
34 died, of U.S aircrew and Polish Paratroopers. Only one survivor.
There is a memorial plaque in All Saints Church Tinwell.
We should always remember them.
Trevor Wissen
Braemar Close, Stamford
Bad driving should not be rewarded by building more roads at our expense
In Last Thursday's Spalding Guardian we were told that 'Speedsters prove need for bypass'. Do we really believe that bad behaviour by motorists should be rewarded by building more and better roads at taxpayers' expense? If anything would justify the building of a bypass for Whaplode, it is surely the sheer quantity of traffic passing through the middle of the village. The nearly 5,000 speeding fines should be seen as a form of voluntary taxation, to the benefit of us all.
David Jones
Spalding
