Letters - Wednesday, November 17, 2021

I write regarding the issue of mandatory vaccines for health staff. As someone who has received the Covid-19 vaccinations, including the booster jab, I would urge all those eligible to get the vaccinations and protect yourself as much as possible from this terrible virus.

By protecting yourself from the worst excesses of the virus, you will also be easing the burden on our health workers and allowing yourself and fellow citizens to receive treatment quicker for other ailments.

I believe that ALL people should get vaccinated, but to threaten someone with years of service to the nation’s health with punitive action is quite simply wrong.

If the reason for NHS workers being vaccinated is to protect the patient then why are those who are medically exempt not sacked?

They are also unvaccinated. Even our Bumbling PM said last week, while telling people to get jabbed, “no, it won’t stop you catching it and it won’t stop you passing it on but it will help to ease the burden in the NHS”.

That is correct. Being jabbed protects the receiver.

We should be putting far more into education and far less into threatening an already overworked section of society.

One final point is – if it is so important that frontline NHS workers must be jabbed in order to protect patients then why is this Government not bringing the sacking law in until April? The winter will be over.

More smoke and mirrors.

Don’t call them heroes one minute then sack them the next.

Tony Winstanley

Via email

POLITICS

MPs of all parties follow the whip

I was amazed and equally amused to hear a local Labour Party chairman saying politicians should not follow the whip (Your Say, Gazette, November 16).

In my lifetime, the Fylde coast has had Labour MPs and we have still have one in Wyre. In my experience I don’t ever recall them rebelling against their party whip.

Those former MPs and current MP all showed strong loyalty to the Labour Party and their trade union chums, even when this was to the detriment of their constituents.

I find the correspondent’s remarks somewhat hypocritical. I don’t recall seeing principle or independence from my former Labour MP. They used to follow the party whip at every opportunity and ignored a large number of their constituents in the EU referendum.

Name and address supplied

SOCIETY

Worries for the most vulnerable

The recent budget contained good news for working people in receipt of Universal Credit, who will benefit from an increase in the amount they can earn before they lose benefits, and an increase in the national minimum wage.

Both of these measures are welcome and will help those on low incomes.

However, these increases will not compensate for the recent cut to Universal Credit, and are likely to be swallowed up by inflationary pressures on the price of food and utilities.

We are concerned about vulnerable people, especially the 27.4 per cent of those in our district who are on Universal Credit and unable to work or look for work, due to ill health or caring responsibilities.

Local charities, including ours, are braced for a difficult winter and we hope that residents will heed our calls for donations with their usual generosity.

Helen Greatorex

CEO, Citizens Advice North Lancashire

TELEVISION

Licence fee being wasted on the post

I recently visited my late father’s house, which has been empty since before the start of Covid.

Among the pile of correspondence on the doorstep were at least 50 letters from TV licensing despite my having told them on several occasions that the property is empty and there isn’t a television at the premises.

No wonder a TV licence is so expensive when so much money is wasted on pointless correspondence.

J Phillips

Via email

RETAIL

I want Garibaldis to be back for good

Shopping today at a branch of Marks and Spencer, I enquired if the firm stocked Garibaldi biscuits.

“No we don’t sir, only our own make,” came the reply from the shop assistant.

Looking puzzled, I confirmed that was the type I wanted and I repeated the request.

“Oh, sorry, sir,” the assistant said, “I thought you said Gary Barlow.”

J Fisher

Via email

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