Instead of the Met seeking new powers to constrain protesters, shouldn’t the police be meeting with protest and local government representatives to find a way of allowing demonstrations?
After all, climate change is the most urgent issue affecting everyone, requiring immediate positive support and action from all quarters.
Sylvia Parnell
It’s all very well extending police powers to prevent protest disruption to businesses [“Met wants new powers to tackle Extinction demos,” October 2] but with Climate Emergency ringing in my ears, “business as usual” seems to prevail.
The inconvenience of blocking a few roads seems to be a small price to pay for the impact it creates.
We Londoners cope with all manner of road closures anyway. Until we find a better way of being heard, our shouts help prevent disruption to the road ahead and our children will be grateful.
Des Kay
Bless all creatures great and small
Let's be kind and compassionate towards all animals and birds, including pigeons, today, the 4th of October, which is the Feast Day of St Francis of Assisi, the patron saint of animals. This is a day when special church services are held to bless animals in the United Kingdom. Pets of all kinds, including dogs, cats, horses, hamsters, pigeons, mice, rabbits and others are blessed.
St Francis, a 13th century monk, is remembered for his generosity to the poor and his ministry to the lepers, and above all, for his great love of all birds and animals, to whom he preached.
He called birds and animals his “brothers and sisters”.
Sylvia Browning
Hong Kongers need UK haven
As Tom Tugendhat, chair of the Commons foreign affairs committee has suggested, the UK government should now offer British citizenship to all Hong Kongers.
This would reassure them at a time of spiralling insecurity and violent protest.
It would honour Britain’s historical responsibilities to the people of Hong Kong, and should Hong Kongers decide to live in Britain, it would also provide our country with an educated, talented and industrious workforce.
Daniel Emlyn-Jones
Communities can tackle knife crime
It was thought-provoking to hear of Lord Heseltine’s “boots on the ground” approach in Toxteth back in 1981 [“I think back to Toxteth as we seek solutions to knife crime,” October 1].
Heseltine now proposes a cross-party inter-city mayoral commission of enquiry into knife crime and the challenges still facing our communities 38 years later.
He says its composition must represent the communities. I agree.
I am in my mid-sixties, I am a parent and I work in the creative sector.
I want our young people to have their voices heard. It is their future that’s at stake, after all.
An excellent BBC One programme, EastSide (broadcast on Monday, September 30), helped us better understand the daily fear and the challenges facing our young inner-city dwellers and how creativity can help rebalance their lives. Let’s not forget about our rural communities either.
There is light at the end of the tunnel for troubled youngsters — through creativity.
Richard Mallett
