This year marks its 60th anniversary – something we can all celebrate. From being on its knees in the mid 90s, the NHS is now in better shape with more staff and new hospitals.

We only need to look around Wigan to see new health facilities such as Boston House delivering modern health care in 21st century facilities.
There are more nurses and doctors and the NHS is now performing more than one million extra operations a year. And virtually no-one now waits more than six months for their operation, compared with waits of up to two years under the Tories.

But I think people in Wigan want to know what we have planned for the future.
Labour is improving the NHS. Our mission is to make the NHS a more personal health service, fitted to the needs of families and focused on preventing ill health as well as curing it.

A lot of change has occurred over the last 60 years. And this means that there are new challenges for our NHS. New drugs, medical technologies and better clinical practices provide us with huge opportunities, whilst diseases like obesity and diabetes as well as an ageing population in Wigan present big challenges.

We need an NHS which is fit for modern life. We as patients should be given greater control, greater choice and a strong voice in our local services in Wigan. It's no good having a great GP if you can't go there after work.

By 2009 the majority of GP surgeries will be open for at least one evening or weekend session every week, and we're continuing to build local health centres and walk-in clinics to fit around your busy life.
So 60 years on, we still have free access to high-quality healthcare and people feel safe in the knowledge that if they or their family need the NHS, it is there for them. We should also take time to say thank you to the wonderful staff who look after us when we need care and attention.

As your MP I can give you this guarantee. I will always fight to improve the NHS in Wigan and work to ensure that it is fit for modern life.
Neil Turner MP, Wigan

We must retain our vital post offices
The post office card account is a good thing to have you can get you money and pay most of you bills at the same time, the post office is also the centre of the community in most cases and we have got very few places like that now.

We must try to help keep this to loose this would be another nail in the coffin of community spirit and we have lost enough of this over the years. I myself will not let this go without making a personal stand, it will be easy for me as I refuse to have a bank account the post office card account is the only way for me to get my payments and if they take that away then they will have to issue a giro which I will have to cash at my post office. If I can do this then others can.

Now is the time to act the days of petitions as had it's day, we petitioned to keep the post offices opened and what happened all they did was laugh at us and did it any way.
George Orwell had it right if we don't start to do something to show the politicians that enough is enough then Big Brother is just round the corner.
Tony Wiggans, via email

Fitting suggestions
Trix and Flix are the official Euro 2208 mascots and were chosen as their names are a vital part of what the tournament's about.
The other mascots were "Book-him-ref", "Snog-him-he's-scored", "Roll around", "Spit-on-the-grass" and "Diving b******d".
D Ashton, address supplied