Readers' letters - April 18

Many people have praised the treatment received from the NHS and rightly so, staff within the service show a commitment to their responsibilities, whilst caring for patients.

That’s despite staff often being under extreme pressure due to alterations within the NHS.

The Sustainability and Transformation plan is designed to try to cope with escalating numbers of patients without increasing funding, and is NOT something that has been developed to improve services.

There is now a shortage of doctors and nurses.

Eighty nurses from the Philippines have been recruited.

One wonders if this Government is capable of any forward thinking.

Whilst they recruit staff from abroad, the Government has, from 2017, stopped bursaries for those training for a career in nursing.

Now instead a young would-be nurse can apply for a loan to pay for training.

The Royal College of Nurses opposed this change, claiming it was ‘unfair’.

The Royal College of Midwives said the prospect of graduating with debts of £50,000 would discourage many, although the NHS is struggling to fill vacancies.

In my opinion, the planned Tory erosion of our NHS is proceeding as more ‘for profit firms’ are given lucrative contracts within the service.

Jack Croysdill

Address supplied

Boris repeating Libyan policy

President Trump’s attack on President al-Assad’s forces in Syria makes some sense as a means of rendering the use of chemical weapons counterproductive and of lending credibility to his military options against North Korea. There are those, however, who wish to extend and exploit this.

Bizarrely, Hillary Clinton tries to suggest that the natural corollary of objecting to the poisoning of civilians is to invite hundreds of thousands of them to settle permanently in the USA.

At the same time supporters of the rebels ask that restrictions upon Syrian government tactics to be made so comprehensive as to bring about regime change.

However black some may wish to paint the soul of Bashar Al-Assad, this does not imply that the opposition leaders who seek to replace him are virtuous men. A long civil war inevitably takes a heavy toll in human life.

Those who begin and perpetuate such a war in order to overthrow the state must bear responsibility for that. Actions taken by the state in resisting this attempt can hardly be cited in mitigation for the earlier act of rebellion.

The West arms, and aids, factions in the war whose leaders escape censure only because most of us don’t know their names. There is no nice option for ruling Syria. It would be criminal to prolong the war for a single day to secure a change of leader. Yet Boris Johnson seems set upon repeating the Libyan policy of William Hague.

John Riseley

Address supplied

A royal matter of concern

A few days ago, a photograph appeared showing the Queen out horse riding, again wearing her usual trademark silk headscarf instead of a protective riding hat. It would appear all her riding takes place on her various estates which will be free from noise and traffic.

However, to my mind, there is no such thing as a 100 per cent perfectly behaved horse. They are animals, not machines, and therefore can be unpredictable at times.

The monarch is now fast approaching 91 years of age and needs to have a serious rethink on this matter, even at this late stage.

Peter J teal

Address supplied