WE live in Nidderdale and have a Harrogate address. Recently my wife decided that she would like to visit Malton as it is more than 50 years since she last went there.

We braved the York outer ring road and the A64 and approached via the York road from the A64. As we approached the traffic lights in the centre of the town, we saw several signs directing us to short-term and long-term car parks.

After turning in the direction indicated there were then no further signs whatsoever to show us where the car park may be.

While their locations must be obvious to the natives of Malton, it was a complete mystery to us as strangers and, after driving around in all directions for about half an hour, crawling through the central traffic lights several times, we finally gave up and went to Pickering instead.

We would have had our lunch in the town and done some shopping while we were there, but couldn’t park anywhere to enable us to do this.

So I must apologise to the Malton traders, but it appears that you do not want our custom. Sorry, but we won’t come again.

B Walton, Nidderdale

EU vote was clear

MEMBERS of the UK Parliament are elected under the auspices of the Representation of the People Act. They are there to represent the wishes of the electorate, all the electorate not merely those who voted for a particular political party.

In June 1975 the UK held a referendum regarding membership of the European Economic Community (EEC).

This allowed tariff free trading between member nations. Edward Heath, the then PM thought it a good idea, Charles de Gaule rebuffed him; Lord Carrington, a negotiator, considered it to be a bit of a can-of-worms.

Since then the electorate of the UK have had no direct say in the the European Union (EU). Two treaties were imposed upon us without reference to the UK population. In 1993 the Treaty of Maastricht, which requires “ever closer union” (ie the creation of a Super State) was quietly introduced, and in 2007 the Treaty of Lisbon with its infamous Article 50.

This is a clause which almost confines a once sovereign country to irrevocable membership (once you are in there is no way out). On April 1, 2017, this is precisely what will happen.

The June 2016 Referendum gave a clear requirement to our representatives and they are required through the Act which put them there to honour that requirement.

D Loxley, Hartoft

Services rethink

IF we are serious about transforming the life chances of the most vulnerable children, we need to change the way we deliver children’s services.

We think that in the years ahead there won’t be enough resources to meet the expected demand, so we need a systemic rethink.

Although local authorities will always have the ultimate responsibility, the voluntary sector has an absolutely vital role to play too.

But at present, scarce resources can be used looking for short-term fixes and sticking plaster solutions.

Instead, we want to urge national and local government to work with voluntary sector organisations like Barnardo’s in strategic partnerships to achieve long lasting change.

We want to be working with local authorities as partners – to be around the table when the problems are identified and help find the best solutions together.

We want to be able to share our insight, our experience and our understanding of local communities.

Most of all, in our 150th year we want to play our part in shaping services, so that children and young people know we believe in them and will support them.

Steve Oversby, director, Barnardo’s East Region

Changing needs

POSITIVE response to the fracking debate should be to look at our energy needs and our environmental needs together. We need to reduce our energy use, we need to retain our soil fertility so as to address our food production and water needs, which are quite as important as our energy needs.

What else do we need? We need to remove carbon from our atmosphere so as to address climate change and we need to deal with the effects of climate change.

We lose biodiversity at our peril. One simple technology can deal with all the above, and it is not fracking. It could be “BIOCHAR”, which is a new way to use charcoal. Come and find out more about this at a talk in Kirkbymoorside on October 29, at 7pm, at the King’s Head. Entrance is free.

Nelly Trevelyan, Appleton-le-Moors Community Woodland Group, and Kirkbymoorside Environment Group