READERS’ LETTERS

What our readers have been writing about this week.

Why are they here?

Sir, – Gulls, why are they here?

The reason that seagulls have forsaken their natural shoreline habitat in favour of town centres is due to the lazy, untidy and thoughtless behaviour of some members of the general public, together with the locating of refuse management plants within the vicinity of residential areas.

The gulls have become flying rats, foraging on the refuse and litter discarded and/or poorly stored. – Yours etc.,

DAVID CORBETT

Palacerigg

Not the whole truth!

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Sir, – I recently received home delivery of a free Labour paper at my home in Abronhill and was surprised at almost all the claims made in it, such as Local Labour claimed they were not going to charge us for parking in town centre areas.

The fact is labour have repeatedly tried to introduce parking charges but local government refused and would not allocate funds to instal parking machines.

Local Labour claim they are building homes for council occupiers, which strictly speaking is the truth, but the facts are that Labour built only six council homes in a 12-year period, the SNP local government has provided the finances for North Lanarkshire to build those houses – which has not been mentioned – and are also in the process of changing the law to ensure council build homes are retained for council tenants and not lost to the private sector – legislation that Labour never attempted.

Another claim was that steel orders for the new bridge had been placed abroad which had cost us local jobs? The truth is that our steel industry was decimated by a London government years ago, the type of steel required for the job cannot be sourced in the UK and this type of contract would have to be open to European suppliers anyway – which is another law agreed by London.

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The above points and others in this handout paper all have an element of truth but not the whole truth! And I can only surmise that the trainee spin doctor who prepared it has done his Labour councillors a disservice yet to be seen, while he could get a good job with Walt Disney in America.

NAME AND ADDRESS SUPPLIED

Silence and lack of support

Sir, – In reply to Councillor Goldie’s letter in your issue of March 26.

I am amazed at the alleged long list of support he has claimed to have given to Health campaigns run by Cumbernauld Community Forum, chaired by Billy Lees and organised by me.

This is an example of silence and lack of support; all the way through the X-ray campaign we have had excellent support from the SNP’s Jamie Hepburn and that fight still goes on. Perhaps he would now like to put pressure on the SNP Health Secretary to present our case as we have requested.

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I do not want to make this a long epistle, but I must deal with his remarks regarding the implementation committee. If it had not been for my local involvement the outcome could have been much worse. The committee is a review committee over a two year period.

There is much more I could say but I will deal with that at a later date.

May I remind all readers that the committee is open to suggestions. – Yours etc.,

DONALD MASTERTON

Secretary CICA

Abronhill

Thank you

Sir, – In view of the recent conduct of politicians, newspapermen, footballers and a goodly percentage of the general public, it has heartened me to report an act of kindness by the person who found my house key, and who at their own inconvenience handed it into the local Police station thus saving a handicapped octogenarian a lot of worry and the expense of replacing the door lock.

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I should therefore like, with your help, to thank this unknown person and commend their action as an example to both myself and others as how we should act in similar situations. – Yours etc.,

J. KINLOCH

Cumbernauld

Understanding your diabetes

Sir, – There is no doubt that a great many of your readers will suffer from Type 1 or Type 2 diabetes. Unfortunately we have found that many people with diabetes feel they do not have enough information to help them with their diabetes.

With this in mind, the Insulin Dependent Diabetes Trust (IDDT) has produced a free booklet ‘Understanding Your Diabetes’ which provides this information in non-medical language, to help people understand their treatment, to improve their health and make life easier.

One of the important aspects of the treatment of diabetes is eating the appropriate diet but we have found that many people do not have enough information about what they should and can eat. Our free booklet ‘Diabetes - Everyday Eating’ helps with this as it contains 28 days of menus of everyday, affordable meals, and much more.

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Having diabetes may mean a stay in hospital, either at diagnosis or as a result of the management of the condition and its complications. Government statistics show that errors in medication or treatment are more likely to occur in people with diabetes while they are in hospital, so to help avoid this IDDT has produced a free ‘Hospital Passport’ for people with diabetes to take into hospital with them. It will provide hospital staff with vital information about the person with diabetes and how their diabetes is managed. It aims to make it easier for people to be treated and for people to receive the treatment they want.

IDDT produces a wide variety of free information. For more information about the work of IDDT or to receive your free copy of ‘Understanding Your Diabetes’, ‘Diabetes - Everyday Eating’ and/or the ‘Hospital Passport’ contact IDDT: Tel. 01604 622837 or email: [email protected] – Yours etc.

MARTIN HIRST

IDDT

Northampton

Celebrate with WCRF

Sir, – Any of your readers celebrating a special event can make a real difference to cancer prevention by inviting World Cancer Research Fund (WCRF) to be part of their celebrations.

Whether it’s a birthday, anniversary, wedding or any other special occasion, by choosing to support WCRF, people can be sure that they are making a real impact on cancer cases by supporting our education and science programmes.

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Through the Celebrate with WCRF scheme participants can create a unique online page to ask friends and family to make a donation to WCRF rather than receive a personal gift.

Setting up a page is easy to do and can be personalised with photos and messages. Money raised will help in the fight to prevent cancer, making any occasion extra special. UK taxpayers can add 25 per cent to their donation at no extra cost through the Gift Aid scheme.

To take part, visit www.wcrf-uk.org/celebrate or call 020 7343 4200 for more information. – Yours etc.,

LUCY DUXBURY

WCRF

Thanks to all players

Sir, – The Scottish Wildlife Trust receives fantastic assistance from the People’s Postcode Lottery to assist us with the conservation of Scotland’s wildlife. A recent donation brings the total money raised by players for the Scottish Wildlife Trust to more than £2 million over the last four years. On behalf of the Trust I extend a massive thank you to every player on this remarkable achievement.

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Each pound raised goes towards looking after Scotland’s very special wildlife and to inspire people to protect our valuable natural heritage. Our wildlife reserves and a great range of species such as the red squirrel, European beaver, peregrine falcon, fragrant orchid and freshwater pearl mussel are benefiting from the support of People’s Postcode Lottery players. In Cumbernauld, money from the People’s Postcode Lottery has helped pay for the upkeep and enhancement of our wildlife reserves throughout town. We hope that thanks to the support of People’s Postcode Lottery players, we can continue promoting these valuable green spaces for everyone in Cumbernauld to enjoy.

The long-term support of players plays a crucial role in the successful protection of our natural heritage for current and future generations. The Scottish Wildlife Trust would like to thank players of the People’s Postcode Lottery for this magnificent support. Good luck with hitting the jackpot! – Yours etc.,

SIMON MILNE

Chief Executive,

Scottish Wildlife Trust

QWe love getting your feedback. Send letters to: Cumbernauld News and Kilsyth Chronicle, 10-12 Tay Walk, Cumbernauld G67 1BU, or send us an e-mail with “Letters” in the subject line.