Letters: Alcohol abuse

Sir: Why prattle on about smoking when alcohol is an even bigger danger (front page, 26 May)? Why are those who have power such hypocrites? More restrictions on cigarettes when that other legal drug causes even more damage?

Why is there no concerted campaign to stop people drinking? Is it that anti-smoking is popular, is it that the Government has a financial interest in keeping the alcohol industry buoyant? Why are there no warning labels on beer?

Why are there no signs at the entrance to pubs indicating the number of deaths caused by drink? Why do teenagers continually drink in my local recreation ground when this is against the law?

There may be more up-to-date figures but my research shows alcohol costs the NHS £1.7bn a year. Alcohol was the main or secondary cause of 207,800 admissions to hospital in 2006-07, compared to 93,000 in 1995-96. The number of prescriptions for the treatment of alcohol dependency between 2004 and 2008 rose by 20 per cent.

Forty per cent of employers think drink is the cause of employee absenteeism. Days lost to drink costs industry about £2bn a year. Each year, 14 million working days are lost in the UK through alcohol misuse.

The bill for cleaning up alcohol-related crime is estimated at £7.3bn a year. A total of 40,000 deaths per year are due to alcohol, one way or another. People who are under the influence of alcohol cause 40 per cent of assaults. One in five teenagers has been in a car when the driver has been under the influence.

I say this as neither a drinker or a smoker, but I am one who sees the broken glass, discarded cans and the vomit in my local park. The few cigarette ends are as nothing compared to this.

J H Moffatt

Stockport, Cheshire

Energy-saving must start now

Sir: The International Energy Agency's admission that "it might have over-estimated" the capacity of the oil-producing nations to keep up with growing demand should send chills down the spines of governments everywhere ("Dwindling world oil reserves take price of a barrel to $135", 23 May).

Peak-oil experts warn us that global demand for oil is outstripping its supply, and rising oil prices are here to stay. The recent rate of discovery of "giant" oil-fields, of more than 500 million barrels, is on a dramatic downward curve: in 2000 there were 16 discoveries, in 2001 nine, in 2002 just two, and in 2003 none. It takes six years from the discovery of an oil-field for the first oil to come to market. If they're called "giant", they still represent less than a week's global supply at current demand rates.

Of the 100 or so giant oil-fields that supply about half of present world production, almost all are more than 25 years old. The last time a major oil province was discovered was in the 1970s. Perhaps most ominously, the last time more oil was discovered in a year than was used was a quarter of a century ago.

The writing on the wall could not be much clearer. Why, then, is our own Government not planning for a transition to a zero-carbon economy with foresight and determination, rather than burying its head in the sand, and wishing the problem away?

How much easier would it be for Labour to resist calls to abandon fuel tax rises, for example, had it used a windfall tax on oil companies to invest in a massive expansion of affordable public transport measures? When the Government's own figures show that we could save 30 per cent of the energy we use through cost-efficient energy saving measures alone, it is approaching criminal negligence for ministers not to have invested in such measures as a priority.

Dr Caroline Lucas MEP,

Principal Speaker, Green Party, Brussels

Sir: I would like to take issue with Hamish McRae ("High oil prices won't stop the world going on growing", Comment, 23 May), who wrote, "Since oil is the largest single source of global energy, larger than natural gas or coal,etc, etc ...". He has not taken into account the huge quantities of frozen methane hydrates that lie below the sea floor in the very deep oceans.

This quantity of this methane is about twice that of all the fossil fuels on land and under shallow waters. Scientists have estimated the amount to be about 10,000 billion tonnes. If this methane were distributed equally to every man, woman and child, each would get about 1,670 tonnes, or in monetary terms, according to my last gas bill, we would get about $1.2m, a total value of about 536 times the GDP of the USA. Additionally, my calculations show that if the average person consumes about two tonnes of fossil fuels a year, we should have enough fossil fuels to last us for nearly 1,000 years.

The methane on land and shallow waters has been produced by biological decay, but this methane has been produced by bacterial action under very high hydrostatic pressures and is still being produced. Not many senior British politicians seem to be aware of the existence of this methane below the sea floor, 1.5 to seven miles underwater.

The good news about this methane is that it is a cleaner fuel than oil or coal; the bad news is that if it is burnt, it will produce about 27,600 tonnes of carbon dioxide. The scientist and technologist would have to deal with this, or the carbon dioxide in the atmosphere will increase by about 1,511 per cent.

Professor Carl T F Ross,

Department of Mechanical & Design Engineering, University of Portsmouth

Sir: New figures indicate the UK Treasury will take an additional £4bn in oil and gas revenues this year due to rising prices, with the total now raised expected to be closer to a staggering £14bn. When businesses across Scotland are feeling the pinch due to rising fuel costs, the fact that the Treasury is making an additional £4bn will clearly disturb many hard-working Scots.

With Mr Darling planning to add an extra 2p to fuel duty in the autumn, it seems the UK Government is determined to pocket all the cash from Scotland's oil revenues to fill the Treasury's black hole. The solution is a fuel-price regulator to keep the price of essential diesel and petrol supplies stable through a system whereby higher oil prices trigger lower fuel duties, which make up two-thirds of the price of petrol and diesel. A similar mechanism is being actively promoted by the French Government.

Despite being one of the world's largest oil producers, Scotland has soaring fuel taxes, and the UK Treasury simply rakes in extra cash from increased duty.

Motorists and businesses across Scotland need urgent government action to protect them from the worst effects of soaring world oil prices.

Alex Orr

Edinburgh

Mobile phones mean efficiency

Sir: None of the "mobile phone refuseniks" (Extra, 26 May) seems to have what most of us would call a proper job. They prosper otherwise. On the other hand, without mobiles, businesses large and small would fail in today's fiercely competitive world. The visiting deliverymen and tradesmen on whom I depend sometimes break off from what they are doing to learn that, say, a vital component they have ordered is ready for collection or that an appointment has been changed.

All these calls reduce ineffective time and travel, thus affording increased efficiency for those earning a living by their skills, as much as a surgeon may be helped by being advised that an operation has been cancelled or postponed for one reason or another..

As for being "lazy" by not "making arrangements": these can go wrong and when deadlines are important, both can be annoying and costly. The people you feature are worthy, entertaining and essential except in the real world of immediacy, inhabited by those of us at the beck and call of every rule and regulation this government or Brussels can invent.

Robert Vincent

Wildhern, Hampshire

Feudal farce inHouse of Lords

Sir: There were two parliamentary by-elections last week. The one held in Crewe and Nantwich was of less significance than the one in the House of Lords among certain hereditary peers. Congratulations are due to the cross-bench Earl of Stair, elected to the House of Lords after a by-election in which only 26 peers participated.

The Crewe and Nantwich result could easily be overturned at the next general election; the hereditary peer returned to the House of Lords will remain there for life. Legislation that is given only a cursory glance by our elected MPs is debated at much greater length in the House of Lords.

I find it repulsive that this anti-democratic process continues, with legislation approved, amended and rejected by individuals who are entirely unanswerable to the British electorate. Can we end this feudal farce once and for all?

Nigel Wilkins

London SW7

Danger mosquito already in Britain

Sir: In your article on the arrival of the tropical disease-carrying Aedes (Asian Tiger) mosquito into Europe, I was surprised to read that it had not yet been observed in the UK. I have seen the Aedes mosquito in Camberley, Surrey, on at least two occasions. I lived in Malaysia for more than 10 years, returning to the UK in 2001, and can readily identify this mosquito.

In Malaysian urban environments we are wary of it particularly because of its propensity to spread dengue fever. The first time I saw this mosquito in Camberley was in my bathroom about four years ago. I was amazed to see that such a dangerous insect should be here.

On the internet, I found the story of them potentially being transported to the UK in used car-tyres aboard ships. I also asked a GP friend if he was aware of this mosquito being present locally and the diseases it can potentially carry. He had not heard of it but thanked me for bringing it to his attention.

I suggest that the Health Protection Agency raises its alert to a higher level; Aedes has already arrived.

John McCawley

Camberley, Surrey

High standards in the chicken trade

Sir: The latest attack by Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall on indoor-reared chicken is misleading and confusing for consumers ("Chef plans share revolt over chicken", 23 May). The Assured Chicken Production (ACP) scheme meets supermarkets' own high standards of welfare, husbandry, food safety and environmental protection. Each chicken can be traced back to the British farm where it was reared by professional farmers, who meet standards above those required by law.

Chickens reared for meat have room to roam in clean barns with constant access to fresh water. They are fed a nutritionally balanced natural diet. Farms are independently audited and monitored regularly to ensure high standards are maintained.

Farmers pride themselves on the humane treatment of their flocks and agree that it is in no one's interest for their birds to be unhealthy or mistreated. They work hard to minimise incidents of mortality, disease and hock burns, and the rates for ACP chicken are amongst the lowest in the industry. The salmonella record is the best in Europe.

ACP British chicken is identified by the Red Tractor mark on food labels. The Red Tractor scheme covers a spectrum from assured indoor chicken through to free-range and organic.

Peter Bradnock

Chief Executive, British Poultry Council, London SE1

Briefly...

And the answer is...

Sir: In your article on the methods employed by examination boards to detect foul play (27 May), you quote the managing director of Edexcel as saying that "80 per cent of kids who cheat are caught". How can he possibly know that?

Mark Fielker

Windsor, Berkshire

Poverty is the key

Sir: Norman Wells cites the Unicef report as evidence that policy should focus on family structure and on the importance of two-parent families (letters, 28 May). But that report showed that those countries scoring highest on child wellbeing had a similar level of lone parenthood to the UK. Single parenthood in the UK may be associated with poverty but that is not inevitable. Effective policies will concentrate on the poverty, rather than on whether a child grows up with one parent or two.

Fiona Weir

Chief Executive, One-Parent Families/Gingerbread, London NW5

It's about jobs

Sir: With all the fuss over Wendy Alexander's U-turn on a referendum on Scottish independence (letters, 22 May), what seems to have been lost sight of is why Gordon Brown is so opposed to a referendum which would allow the Scots to decide democratically. It is simple. If the SNP win, Mr Brown, Chancellor Alistair Darling, his Defence Secretary Des Browne, Douglas Alexander and all 40-plus Scottish Labour MPs will be out of a job.

John S Jappy

Marybank, Muir of Ord

Contempt for MPs

Sir: Mark Steel's indignation at MPs' unwillingness to account for expenses is remarkably restrained (Comment, 28 May). It is scarcely credible that not only do they have the cheek to claim for pergolas (Margaret Beckett), £1,600 for window cleaning (Barbara Follet) and in the case of Gordon Brown his Sky subscription, but also that they resent being asked. Possibly they feel they should be able to retain their salaries as pocket money. It is contemptible, and they just don't get it.

Peter Whitby

Bossington, Somerset

Problem solved?

Sir: I would like to reassure your readers that, while TV Licensing has a duty to collect the licence fee, we have no wish to trouble people needlessly (letters, 24 May). We would advise your correspondent, Mr Derek Carr, to ask his daughter to call us on 0844 800 6732 so we can make sure all our records are up to date, and minimise future correspondence. The information on our database is confidential and is used for the sole purpose of TV Licensing.

Ian Fannon

Communication Manager, TV Licensing, London WC2

Blessed bleep

Sir: I was employed at Bleadon parish church in Somerset for 12 years as the Bleadon organist (letters, 28 May). When a new rector arrived, it took his wife some time before she was comfortable answering the phone with "Bleadon Rectory".

David Lowton

Weston-super-Mare