Licence fee diversion

Yorkshire people will be dismayed by the announcement that the government plans to hit our local BBC television and radio services.

The proposed two-year freeze on licence payments would in effect be a fine of £285m on our national broadcaster, forcing it to cut back on programming. This would come on top of the real terms cut of 30% made to BBC funding since 2010.

Many of our senior citizens can’t afford the pay channels that target a younger audience, so instead rely on the BBC for local countryside programmes and news.

Since 1927, the BBC Charter commits it to “inform, educate and entertain”, and its freedom from commercial profiteering has enabled world-beating content: from the excellent CBBC to Bitesize Education, which supported 5.8m students during the pandemic, and quality wildlife documentaries by Sir David Attenborough.

In fact, according to the National Audit Office the BBC is used by 90% of adults and 80% of 18- to 34-year-olds every week.

Decisions over its funding should be an independent and transparent process and should not be made on ministerial whim to divert attention from the floundering Boris Johnson.

If you want to preserve the BBC’s range of excellent services then please write to your MP. This act of vandalism must be stopped.

Dr Peter Williams

Newbiggin, Malton

Armageddon declined!

Tomorrow’s Press headlines could be Ukrainian conflict with Russia.

I would dearly love to write a personal open letter to Russian President Putin.

Plainly it would say Ukraine is your children from the past, so let them evolve.

You too must evolve and join Nato - you know it makes sense!

Although I have never been to Russia, the Cold War of our past is something for any civilised species to be ashamed of. We were close to global oblivion. And today? Must history repeat itself?

Today our headlines of Boris and his ill advised shenanigans frightens me in believing that all this is a smoke screen to hide this dangerous predicament we face today. Face up to stark reality.

In the words of John Lennon: ‘All we are saying is give peace a chance.’

Phil Shepherdson

Woodthorp, York

Parliament of fools

I was ashamed to call myself English on Wednesday after watching the scenes in Parliament.

The so called ruling class acted like silly little infants in a Kindergarten playground waving order papers in the air and screaming like children who can’t have their ball back.

Both leaders made complete fools of themselves in front of a World audience. They both deny wrongdoings, one says he wasn’t fully aware of the rules, the other says I didn’t break the rules and I don’t tell lies, now there’s a first for any politician.

Come on the real rulers and take a grip and stop these children in their tracks before the populous start believing their intentions.

TJ Ryder

York

First Lootenant

As Peter Taylor says ( Letters Jan 20 Jan), no York councillor wants to accept responsibility for our public conveniences and the disgusting state they are in.

Perhaps some aspiring councillor will take on the task if the job title has the military themed ‘First Lootenant '.

Geoff Robb

Hunters Close, Dunnington