Norman's onto a winner at Aintree - Champion Newspapers

12 • Visit us @ www.ChampNews.com M The Champion • Wednesday 11 April 2012
LETTERS to the Editor
Rules now favour
the developers
Council depend on experts
to get financial advice
Sefton planning committee turned down the
plans for the care village at Damfield Lane
quite rightly in my view.
This matters because new planning rules
came into force last week and the planning
committee will have fewer reasons to turn
down planning applications in the future.
In the light of auditors telling
Maghull Council that its financial
regulations are not been up to
scratch it strikes me that other
parish councils and voluntary
bodies may have similar problems
but be unaware it.
The government has introduced a new It is difficult for volunteers
‘presumption in favour of development’, sitting on parish councils to know
which is open to legal interpretation.
We all know that means money for the
lawyers and it means that big developers which
can afford to pay big legal fees, will do well.
what financial regulations they
should have in place.
On that basis I have asked
Sefton’s chief executive to put in
place some clear advice for such
James Herbert, Maghull
organisations so that, as far as
possible, the same issues are not
PICTURE of the week
Social club night
a great success
At Fairfield Sheltered Accommodation
(Adactus Housing) we have started a Tenants
Social Club.
Our first venture was a Charity Race Night
which was a great success.
We would like to thank the Local Businesses
who were very kind enough to Sponsor the
Races.
They are The Barber Shop on Liverpool Road
Crosby,Optisavers on Liverpool Road
Crosby,Yusef,s Newsagents,The Flower Box,
‘The Local’ Store,and Wing–Wah Chinese
Takeaway All of Endbutt Lane Crosby .
Thanks again to all of you for your wonderful
generousity.
The money raised will go towards enhancing
the Social Life of the Club Members
encountered. Frankly, folks like
me who don’t have financial
qualifications depend on
professional advice.
What Maghull Council had in
place was seemingly not
sufficient but who, other than
auditors, would know that?
What’s more Maghull Council
had good auditor’s reports for
years on end while those very
same ‘inadequate’ financial
regulations had been in place!
Cllr Tony Robertson,
By email
Burscough Bridge railway station was briefly reunited with the bygone era of steam when this London, Midland and Scottish loco–
motive, built circ 1942, called on its return journey between York and Southport last week. Picture by Martyn Snape. Code: 1049806.
Help police catch
cannabis dealers
Re: the article by Jack Mcilroy Reid,
concerning the police clampdown on cannabis
and how they are relying on the public to
inform them of possible cannabis
factories/dealing.
Iwouldliketohighlightthattherewasone
important thing omitted from this article and
this was a telephone number on which people
can call to inform the police.
Might I suggest they ring Merseyside Police on
0151 709 6010 to report any activity in their
area.
It is in everyone’s interest to report these
incidents and help the police to do their job.
These dealers are affecting the lives of hard
working, decent honest people and they need
to be reported.
Name and address supplied,
Hugh McGarry, By email
Aintree
Write to the Editor at
Clare House, 166 Lord Street, Southport PR9 0QA
It’s your vote,
don’t lose it
20mph signs have been
put up wrong way round
Iwaspleasedtoseethatnew
speed limit signs had been put
up on the entrance to the
Moorhey Road estate, at the
end of Old Hall Road, Maghull.
A20mphlimitisagoodideain
an area containing two primary
schools and where children still
play in the street.
And so I found it difficult to
believe what I saw when these
signs were unveiled.
They seem to me to be the
wrong way round!
Drivers are now expected to
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Email
editorial@champnews.com
Local elections are being held on May 3, and
now is the last chance for everyone to ensure
they can take part in these important elections
by registering to vote by Wednesday, 18 April.
Many people who are not registered to vote
mistakenly believe they are. Those particularly
at risk of losing the chance to have their say are
people who have moved house since last
autumn, and younger people.
Registering to vote is a simple process.
Go to www.aboutmyvote.co.uk and print off a
registration form (or contact the local
authority electoral services department).
Our message is: it’s your vote, don’t lose it!
Barbara Lines,
Electoral Commission
Newsdesk
01704 392 400
Nice tax cuts for
the super rich
Don’t you just feel sorry for the poor old Tories
having to jump through intellectual hoops to
justify reducing the top rate of tax for their
super rich mates?
And the reason given was that it brought in
very little revenue because the rich either
through creative accounting and legal loop
holes or perhaps other not so legal methods
refused to pay it.
Wonderful, this should be applied across the
board.
So with, say, benefit thieves perhaps we
should increase benefits by ten times because
of course it must be really difficult and stressful
for them to have to go around inventing ten
different personalities who don’t live at their
house.
Or with, say, people who fiddle their
electricity meter because obviously they are
refusing to pay the right bill we should
therefore make electricity free for them.
Another pearl of wisdom from the budget
must have been how angry the Tories were
with those corrupt filthy rich bankers that
caused the meltdown in 2008 and who needed
bailing out by the taxpayer.
So they’ve thought we’ll make them pay their
fair share by increasing taxes on poor
defenceless pensioners!
Mark Holt,
Waterloo
Website
www.champnews.com
slow down to 20 mph just off
Northway, but are then
encouraged to accelerate to 30
mph again going ON to the
estate, going past St George’s
Primary School.
Iwonderifthisistheonly
estate in the country that has 20
mph signs as you LEAVE?
Also, the 20 limit up Hall Lane
is raised to 30 again just as you
get to Maricourt School.
Does this make any sense?
Michael Follin, By email
Walk–in centre
is a long way off
AChampionletteraskedaboutplansforanew
walk in centre in Maghull.
Sadly, because of the money being spent on a
massive reorganisation of the health service,
there is less money for patient care, let alone
for new facilities at Westway Health Centre.
The worry is that changes to the NHS will
mean longer waiting lists and fewer facilities as
hospitals and health centres have to sell
services to the private sector to make up for
cuts in their budgets. There will be no new
health facilities in Maghull or anywhere else
for a very long time as a result of what is really
the start of privatisation of the NHS.
Jill Maguire, Lydiate
Group Editor
Malcolm Hindle
1107576