New problems need new leaders

In schools, academics agree working class children’s prospects are reduced as they become marginalised because of the amount of teacher time devoted to teaching English to those for whom English is not their first language. As a result, opportunity and social mobility is reduced, and in the ensuing jobs market they face huge competition for minimum wage jobs. Long gone is the safety net offered by mining and the steel industry, this has now been replaced by zero hours contracts and lack of security.

Is it any wonder that our young people feel traumatised and betrayed, and the social problems this creates have increased, together with the cost of dealing with these problems both nationally and locally? Mr Miliband keeps repeating the statement that immigration is good for our country, what he means is that it is good for him and his colleagues in London. They are happy to have their drinks served and hotel beds made, whereas here, the effect on the young, the poorly educated and self-employed is severe.

Letters August 22, Rob Elliott refers to Cllr Smith claiming success for reducing the housing requirement, but the intention is still to build on greenbelt. He is urging people to ask their local councillor to vote against the Local Development Plan on housing. I can assure him UKIP councillors will support residents in their demand that any remaining brownfield sites should be developed first. However, for Labour, councillors’ opposition would be extremely difficult. The planning inspector has now found the proposed plan to be ‘sound’, and as such it is impossible for them not to accept it. But the real question is why are so many houses required? Well they are not required for the children of the residents of the communities that will be lost forever in the urban sprawl. They are for the overspill of Sheffield and anyone else they allow to come here from across Europe.    

And as we approach the general election next year we get further indication of the same tired old party regurgitating the same tired old messages and alarmingly with the same recurring tired old names. Ignoring the Christian names, the surnames of candidates looking for a safe Labour seat include a who’s who of failure; Blair, Straw, Prescott, Kinnock, Benn. You have to ask yourself what council estate did these people grow up on, what experience do they bring to the fore, when and where have they held a job for long enough to understand our problems and concerns.? They are just clones of leaders from the past! So same old Labour, same old bunch of failures; Balls, Miliband, Burnham… It’s time to move on, their world is gone, we are faced with a whole new set of problems,  and we need new people to face up to them.

Allen Cowles, Sitwell Ward