Readers' letters - August 4

Brexit has been called the “revolt of the peasants against their masters” who, in turn, believed the lower orders were too thick or stupid to know what they were voting for.It is this insufferable attitude that has spawned ‘populism’ all over Europe and the US with Hillary Clinton calling them (us) “deplorables”.We, the peasants, knew exactly what we were voting for and the goings-on in Brussels. Staying in the EU would not be a vote to stay where we are now. The EU is not static –it is dynamic, moving forward, treaty by treaty to ever closer union, with the UK dragged along behind.It would be a vote to ‘acquiesce’ to what’s coming down the track and no more ‘opt-outs’. With our bluff called, Brussels demanding more from member states, the UK would be supplicant, never again to say “no”.The game is now up. Just walk away into WTO rules and let Brussels stew a while until they return to the table with a reasonable deal.Brian JohnstonAddress suppliedTrust did all the workHaving read the article by Bob Clare on the Ribble Link, I would like to request that Bob be advised that his article is factually incorrect (WP July 28). The Lancaster Canal boat club and the Lancaster Canal Trust did not receive any funding from the Millennium Commission and had very little, if anything, to do with the building and promoting of the Ribble Link. All the work and promotion was done by the Ribble Link Trust, of which I am the chairman, and both myself and the committee worked tirelessly to raise the £5.4m which was required to complete the project.Cliff FazackerleyChairman Ribble Link Trust Bob Clare, Walks Correspondent, writes: While I carefully researched my introduction to John Hargreaves’s walk using the Ribble Link Trust website (www.ribblelink.co.uk) and a detailed article on Wikipedia, I did not make it clear that the supervision, promotion and creation of the link itself was due to the hard work of Cliff and the members of the Ribble Link Trust. I apologise for that omission and take this opportunity to thank them for establishing a superb amenity to be enjoyed by boaters, anglers, walkers and cyclists.

Don’t blame the rail staff

The news that 950,000 hours have been lost due to the chaos that has befallen rail operator Northern came as no surprise to the thousands of commuters who have suffered daily as a result of this shambolic state of affairs, myself included. However I think it is important that we spare a thought for the poor employees of Northern – the unfortunate conductors who are forced to engage with angry commuters day in and day out. Through no fault of their own, these individuals have faced disrespect, mistreatment and torrents of abuse. From my own experience, in the face of incredible hardship, they have remained affable and sympathetic. So, I implore even the angriest of fellow commuters to be mindful before taking out your, quite justified, frustration on someone who so clearly does not deserve it. Andrew MorrisAddress suppliedExcessive time on smartphones

I do have a mobile phone – kept in a safe place and used for emergencies. Am I missing something? I have read a report saying people check their smartphones every 12 minutes. Forty hours a week online?! I find these quite disturbing statistics. Am I arrogant in thinking that people are so unsure of themselves as to need these frequent connections? Perhaps a bit more faith in God might help! Michael StoreyAddress suppliedCongestionI hear increasingly of more and more cases of traffic congestion on our roads.Could this be possibly due to the never-ending rise of new housing developments – and therefore cars –springing up on all our green fields?Molly Clarevia email